The Promise
by Rabid Lola
Summary: February 10, Himiko's seventeenth birthday, and the time her curse decides to strike. Time to keep the promise you made. Complete, AU.
1. Prologue: Let it Begin

_The Promise _

_A Get Backers Fanfic by Rabid Lola_

_Disclaimer: Get Backers, Himiko, and the real Voodoo Child curse is owned by Rando Ayamine and Yuuya Aoki ( I finally got their names right:D) The Voodoo Child curse here is my own creation put together from the bits and clues I've found on the net. Enjoy. _

_Just to let you know, whatever hints of any pairing you see, romance has no main part to play in this fic. _

_And Himiko's birthday is on February 10. :)_

**Prologue: Let it Begin **

…---…

_It's a promise, Yamato._

_When that time comes. _

…---…

_February 9, 10:50 PM_

Himiko glanced at the clock, then hastily away. She was curled up on her couch, hugging her knees, rocking back and forth.

She hadn't been out of the house in two days.

_It was almost time. _

Somehow, in the past week, she'd been able to avoid her friends. Even Dr. Jackal, her fellow hakobiya. Even Ban and Ginji, who had been relentlessly calling her phone since 6 AM. She never answered.

She didn't want them to worry.

_I can't let them see me. _

Thanks to Ban, most of her friends knew that something—no one knew exactly what, was going to happen on her seventeenth birthday.

Something to do with her curse.

She herself had felt it, creeping up on her for a month now. Something supernatural, unexplainable. Sometimes she saw flitting substances, ghostly images, haunting, watching. Shades of gnarled figures, witches, shadowing her, following her. She knew they were waiting for her.

She told no one.

A sense of impending doom had been hanging over her for a while. And then, the realization had come that the curse would harm others, kill the people she cared about.

_Last Children, Voodoo Children_

_Doomed to live then die_

_Last Child, Voodoo Child, _

_Fated to destroy. _

And last night, she had heard Yamato, calling out in alarm…

A furious knocking came at the door.

Himiko looked up, startled, scared.

The pounding came again.

Had they decided to come early?

_It isn't midnight yet!_

She broke out in cold sweat.

Pound, pound. _"Himiko-chan!" _a warning electric crackle.

She stared, not believing it. Then she was up and at the door.

"Ginji!"

He stared at her, warm brown eyes worried. "You weren't answering your phone!"

"I…Ginji, why are you here this late?" she said, feigning indignance. "It's…" she glanced at the clock, shuddered, and looked away. "Past 11:00 PM."

"Don't pretend to be normal." Arrogant, condescending, tone sharp with worry. Himiko opened the door wider, and received another shock. One who was just coming up the stairs, crushing a cigarette under his shoe in a manner that told her he was trying to hide his concern.

"Ban!"

"Himiko-chan, we were worried! Why didn't you answer? Didn't you think that tomorrow…" Ginji trailed off, unsure of what to say.

Himiko looked at the pair: the warmhearted, yellow-headed electric eel and the complicated, confusing snake, and she whispered the first thing that came to her head.

"Are you here to kill me?"

The vivid blue eyes widened with incredulity in tandem with Ginji's exclamation of surprise. Then Ban's eyes softened, meeting Himiko's wide, scared ones.

Had he ever given her solid, true reason to believe that he would never do that?

And she was so scared now. It was too near the time.

So he simply said "No," in a gentle voice, so unlike his usual. He turned her around and firmly led her back into her apartment, seating her on the couch, then settling in a chair opposite it. Ginji went in, shut and locked the door.

Himiko was shaking… _11:10 PM_. "Then why?" her violet eyes were pleading, scared. As the hour drew nearer, she could sense it, so near, but she could not recognize it. And whispers were disturbing her, though whether they were her own fears or something else, she didn't know.

"Do you really think we'll let you face it alone?" Ban asked finally.

A surprised stare, a choked sob, and she was flinging her arms around his neck, relief and gratitude breaking what little composure she had left. Ban froze, and a flash of confusion, as well as a short flush, sped across his face. At loss, he shot a glance at Ginji, with an expression that said _Help me._

Ginji grinned, a little, at his partner's ineptness at showing emotion.

_It's okay, Ban-chan, you can hug her back. _

He seemed to get the message, because slowly, he folded his arms around the slim girl, while Ginji knelt beside them and rubbed her back soothingly. She wasn't crying yet. She was keeping it in, desperately, her breath coming out in harsh gasps. But slowly, they felt the tension, and some of the fear she'd been keeping in for the past month, drain out of her.

They stayed that way for some time.

...---…

_11:58 PM _

They were all on the couch, Himiko wedged between Ban and Ginji. She was sleeping, finally, leaning against Ginji. He, too, was asleep. Ban was smoking, his arm draped over the back of the couch, encompassing both Himiko and Ginji. He stared fixedly at the clock on the wall.

The hand moved.

_11:59 PM._

Just…one…minute…

Mist began to creep under the door, and slowly, so as not to disturb his sleeping companions, Ban stood, facing the door, blocking them with his body. Ginji stirred, opened his eyes.

_Midnight._

_February 10. _

BOOM.

It struck like a vicious blow, rattling their bones and shaking the foundations of the building. A howling tore through the night, a tornado of winds whipping their hair and their clothes. Himiko awoke with a scream, eyes wide, hands clutching at the couch. Ginji—Raitei—Ginji, leaped up with a fierce shout, electricity crackling and automatically forming a barrier around the three. The room warped, a terrible moaning, cackling, beating assailed their ears. A malevolent storm of darkness threatened, threatened…

And for a moment, all time stopped. And the room split, then reformed, then tried to split again…

Ban was straining, standing before them, arms spread out wide as he tried to contest with the vile, ancient magic that was trying to drag them into another dimension. The Jagan and the Aesclepius were not the only things he'd inherited from his grandmother.

"Ban-chan!" Ginji cried in alarm, Himiko was twisting, jerking, covering her ears with her hands. Instinctively Ginji grabbed her flailing arms and she snapped her head up, her eyes once again wild. She was panting, screaming. "Don't let them get me…don't let them get me!" Her voice was shrill, tense. In her eyes, Ginji saw agony.

Himiko felt nothing but pain, fear. The whispering intensified, demonic, taunting. Screams echoed in her head: the fate of hundreds of generations threatening her, tempting her, torturing her.

Ban stepped backwards, sweat beading his forehead, brow furrowed in a stressed grimace. Desperately, he tried to keep the room together, tried to shield Himiko's mind. Shutting his eyes, he called on the deepest reserves of the dormant magic he possessed. Outside Ginji's barrier of electricity, ghostly shapes rose. Hands stretched out, and negative energy lit grotesque forms and faces.

In Ban's right arm, Aesclepius shifted.

_Let go, boy. _

_WHAT?! _

The snake moved again, flowed. _Release me, then let this dimension go. _

_Are you crazy? They'll get Himiko! _

_Trust me. _The spirit moved up and out of Ban's arm.

Ban grit his teeth, and released the serpent, at the same time letting go of the weak hold he had on this dimension.

There was a crash of thunder, a blaze of light. He flung himself backwards and crashed into…it felt like Ginji. Frantically, his arms shot out and he grabbed out. He felt Ginji's arm and Himiko's hand, and sighed in relief.

And then they were in a blackness spreading into infinity, a blackness that contained stars and suns, wheeling around and above and below them. They were standing, the three of them, hand in hand, yet when they looked down they saw no floor, no support. And around them, encircling them, were the semi-transparent coils of a great snake. The body was nearly waist-height.

Ban glanced quickly at his companions, to make sure they were okay. Ginji was on the opposite side of Himiko now, eyes wide, taking in the vast, beautiful panorama of the universe. Himiko was clutching both their hands tightly, breath shallow, eyes just as wide. She was shocked that she was still here, alive, and _sane. _Ban winced at the pressure of her grip. Her head swiveled to him, and she opened her mouth to ask a question, but he shook his head, motioning her to be silent, for a while.

Ginji didn't seek permission before speaking, though. "Where are we?"

"In another dimension," Ban answered.

"We can see that, Ban," Himiko said with her customary sharpness. She wasn't fully normal yet, though, or she would have let go of their hands by now. Then again, maybe they were all a little scared of letting go and falling into that endlessness.

Ginji was looking at Ban, eyes probing, thoughtful. "You've been here before, haven't you, Ban-chan?"

Silence. Now both of them had their eyes on him. There came an emotionless "Aa."

The coils of Aesclepius shifted.

Ginji didn't press further, but Himiko, not catching Ban's tone, did. "Then what _is _this place?"

Ban didn't answer, for a while.

"Ban?"

"Himiko-chan," Ginji whispered. "Don't—"

"It's where I got my Jagan," Ban cut in. They stared at him in surprise. He jerked a thumb in the direction of the snake. "And him." A wry, bitter grin crooked the corner of his mouth. "You could call it the Birthplace of Curses."

A sibilant hissing filled the air, and a lazy, smooth voice echoed around them. "Be grateful, boy. The Jagan and I have saved you more times than I can count."

"Aa, aa, I know," Ban snorted. "I'm just remembering how much it…"

"_Witch Queen's brat,_" a poisonous voice hissed, angry and frustrated.

Ginji and Himiko's heads whipped in the direction of the speaker. Ban, moving more slowly, more coolly, released Himiko's hand and stepped forwards slightly. Himiko, seeing she wouldn't fall, let go of Ginji's hand, quickly and automatically folding her arms. He didn't notice, just squinted at whatever was in front of them, trying to see who had spoken.

Beyond the protective coils of Aesclepius, a withered, ragged shape materialized. An ugly—damn ugly, Himiko mentally noted—old crone. She was stooped over with extreme age, clothed in a ragged, deep purple cloak. Her skin was ashen gray, and she sported numerous wrinkles, warts, a harelip, a bulbous nose, and uncommonly sharp eyes, one almost obscured by a droopy eyelid. Her white hair—what was left of it, flapped every which way, and her gnarled, spindly hands were twitching, as if she wanted to place them around Ban's throat.

Ban, as always, was being infuriatingly arrogant. "Midou Ban-sama, if you please."

"Shut up," the crone spat violently. "How did you guess?"

Ban raised an eyebrow. "Guess what?"

"This!" The crone gestured to the vast expanse, the Birthplace, the three mortals, the coils of the shifting snake. "How DARE you deprive us of…" she leered at Himiko, eyes glinting maliciously. "Our little Himiko-chan."

Himiko's eyes flashed angrily. "Don't call me that."

The crone chuckled. "Temper, temper, Himiko-chan. I can understand how hard it is to keep, though. It runs very strongly in…" an evil chuckle. "_Our family_."

Himiko stared in shock. Ginji's eyes widened, Ban's eyebrows shot up nearly into his hairline. "I'm not related to _you!" _Himiko cried.

"You've said too much," a clear voice cut in. Another figure appeared, striding towards them out of the horizon. In startling contrast to the old crone, this woman was beautiful—achingly beautiful. She was tall, slim, and robed in dark, regal colors. And she did look disturbingly like Himiko. She had the same sea-green hair, the same violet eyes. But her hair was long, her skin was fair, and her facial structure a little different. She stepped forward and reached out a hand, as if to touch the transporter girl.

Protective power crackled around the woman's hand as it passed Aesclepius's body. Frowning, she hastily pulled it back. Drawing herself up, she nodded to the snake.

"Aesclepius," she said coldly.

"Amaya-san, my charming sorceress," the voice of the spirit was laden with sarcasm. "It's been too long."

"Himiko." A slight sneer, a forbidding, aristocratic curl of the lip.

Himiko gazed back coolly.

The woman turned to Ginji. "Raitei."

"Amano Ginji," he corrected softly, firmly.

A cruel smile, before turning to Ban. In a tone that was almost wary, certainly hateful, "Midou Ban."

Ban inclined his head. "-Sama."

Amaya's eyes flashed irritation, yet she did not rise to the bait. Extending a hand to gesture towards the crone, she said, "Please excuse my sister Shinya," she smiled at Himiko's snort of disbelief. "We are…upset."

Ban lit a cigarette, and kept the lighter. "Get straight to the point."

Amaya's eyes turned to steel, and she turned her head to face Ban. "The point is this, Midou Ban," she snapped venomously. Acid cunning entered her eyes, frightening, warning. "You deprived us of the first blow, therefore, by law, we may not claim the girl immediately." She spread her hands in a mocking gesture. "What do you need from us? Ask, and we shall do it."

"_Claim the girl?_" Himiko's incensed voice rose.

"What can you offer?" Ban asked, ignoring Himiko's words and Ginji's questioning, "Ban-chan?"

A smile. "Wise, Ban. Very wise."

Shinya stepped forward in a flutter of tattered robes. Angrily, she rasped out, "By the same law, we can offer this: trial and contest, lasting, by tradition, the whole day."

"The other choices," Amaya cut in smoothly. "Are you give her to us, now, or kill her."

"Ban, what's this?" Himiko asked sharply, a note of fear in her voice.

"Make your choice now," the sorceress said with sardonic glee.

"Trial and contest," Ban replied instantly. "But we get to hear the terms."

"BAN!"

"Himiko-chan! Trust him!" Ginji said softly.

Amaya's eyes gleamed. "I'm sorry, Ban, but since you are not the Cursed one," she smiled, a chilling, heartless smile at Himiko. "You may not decide."

"Himiko?" Shinya's voice cracked, sadistic laughter behind it.

Himiko stared around belligerently in the silence, seeing Ginji's pleading eyes andAmaya and Shinya's hard ones, visible even over the distance. Ban's visibly tense expression, the worried lines on his forehead and around his mouth.

_Himiko-chan, trust him. _

A soft, involuntary hissing from the snake spirit could be heard.

"Trial. And contest," Himiko said finally.

"Settled," Shinya said, not without some disappointment.

"And, as Ban bargained," Amaya turned to the man in question. "You get to hear the terms."

"He's too sharp," Shinya muttered.

"He's _her _grandson," Amaya answered. She turned her attention once more to Ban.

"The trials will be spaced three hours apart," she began in a clear voice. "An impartial judge is going to be there to give the verdicts. The trials are of our making." By _our _they instinctively knew she did not mean just the two of them. "For your part, Himiko may take the two of you with her into the trials. We know you don't trust us, Midou Ban-sama," she said, sweetly and sardonically.

"If you win," Shinya spoke up. Her lips curled at her next words. "We raise the curse, and it will not touch Himiko nor any of her descendants—if there are an—again. But if you lose…" A sinister leer. "You'll have to choose between the two remaining choices."

"The catch in the system?" Ban asked.

Shinya chuckled appreciatively. "We don't know how long each trial will last."

"How can't you know? You made it!" Ginji sounded angry.

"Meaning," Ban said, eyes glinting dangerously. "The trials can overlap."

The sisters smiled. An eerie similarity could be seen between them. "You _are _smart," Amaya cooed.

"What about the contest part?" Himiko asked suddenly.

The sisters grinned, skull-like, at her, and she shrank back. "That's for us to decide," Shinya said.

"We agree to the terms," Ban growled out. A meaningless formality.

"Then," the two spread out their hands. "Let it begin."

"What's the first…"

They disappeared.

Ban cursed.

Himiko wheeled Ban around, eyes flashing. "Ban, what's happening?" it came out half shouted, she was too frustrated to care.

He gripped her by the shoulders, all cool gone, and gave her a little shake, eyes hard. "Shut up. And listen.

"I can't tell you much, we don't have that much time." His eyes bored into her. A wind began to whip around them. "We stopped them from hitting you with the curse right away. I'm still not sure what exactly it is. But we were able to bargain. Himiko, listen." Another shake.

"I'm _listening!_!"

Ban's voice was low, intense. "They're the original makers of your curse. They're going to give you tests, trials. The judge is impartial, thank God for that. You have to pass _all_ the tests. You can't fail any. The moment you fail, they'll take you, and curse you. Understand?"

Himiko stared up at him, scared. "Hai." It was enough.

He nodded, then let her go. "Good luck. Ginji!"

"Un," Ginji nodded, taking Himiko's arm. The wind whipped harder, a subtle warping filled the air.

"You go with Ginji."

"Ban-chan, you're not coming?" Ginji asked, surprised.

Ban shook his head. 'I don't trust them not to do anything to this place while we're gone. Anything that happens within the Birthplace will affect you in the trial zone."

"But…" they started at the same time.

A portal opened, inches away.

"You'll come back here, when the test is done," Ban said roughly. "Take care." He gripped Ginji's arm tightly, blue eyes meeting brown for a wordless second. He turned to Himiko, and his eyes softened. "You, too."

They nodded and the portal engulfed them, disappearing in a flash.

Ban was left alone among the endless stars, with only a snake spirit for company. He sat down on the non-existent floor and lit a cigarette, blue eyes sharp and watchful.

"They'll be fine." Aesclepius's head finally appeared, snake eyes staring at Ban.

"They'd better be."


	2. 12:00: Ghosting Hour

  
  
_**Disclaimer:** I don't own Get Backers. Betcha didn't know that._

**Chapter One: 12:00, Ghosting Hour **

They were in mist. 

Lots and lots of mist. 

Ginji blinked, looked around, and blinked again. He could see nothing beyond Himiko, whom he was still holding by the arm. She was staring around, too, though not in confusion. More like in sharp watchfulness. 

Ginji thought that this wasn't an improvement from the endless universe. This was endless too…only, as stated before, it was mist. 

He looked down. Oh wait, an improvement. There was a floor. Look, white tiles. 

"Do you know where we are, Himiko-chan?' 

"No," she answered quietly. 

His Mugenjou-trained senses suddenly kicked in. Swiftly, he turned, forcing Himiko to face the same way he was. His brown eyes snapped to alertness, wariness. 

"Ginji, what…?" 

"Ooh, how nice, he can sense us." The now familiar rasp of Shinya echoed out from the direction they were staring in. 

Himiko sighed, annoyed. "Why are you here?" 

Amaya and Shinya appeared. "We're the ones who made your trial," Shinya drawled, eyes gleaming unpleasantly. "We get to watch." 

"Make sure you pass," Amaya added slyly. 

Suspicion instantly entered Himiko. "What do you mean?" 

"You'll see." 

"How _do_ I pass? What's the test?" 

Laughter. "You'll have to figure it out on your own…" 

"That's unfair!" Ginji exclaimed, stepping forward. 

Amaya and Shinya laughed and began to fade away…then some sort of barrier surrounded them, and they stopped. They glanced angrily around, and Himiko and Ginji watched, confused. 

A soft, amused voice seemed to fill the air, yet the speaker could not be seen. And Himiko and Ginji could not tell what it was saying. Himiko, though, had the distinct feeling it was the impartial judge. 

Ginji got the impression that the judge was telling them that it was, indeed, unfair. 

"What if we don't want to tell her?" Shinya asked, sounding, for all the world, like a rebellious teenager. 

Then the judge would be forced to pass her, by default, regardless of what happened, since no parameters were set. 

"Oh, all right," Amaya sighed irritably. 

"Who elected YOU for judge, anyway?" Shinya grumbled. 

The judge didn't know and he hadn't been so much elected as plucked out of his dimension without warning, and would they please hurry up before he began to get impatient. 

The barrier disappeared. "You have to keep silent," Amaya flung at Himiko. 

Himiko stared, as did Ginji. "What?" the boy voiced. 

"Throughout the whole first trial, she cannot make a sound. Otherwise, she fails, You…" a malicious grin split Amaya's face. "Only you? Midou is too smart…he _really_ doesn't trust us." 

"What's happening to Ban-chan?" Ginji cried, electricity crackling around his clenched fists. 

"Oh, nothing, he'll just have to hold off our attacks on the Birthplace by himself," Shinya cackled. 

Vials automatically appeared in Himiko's hands, and she stared at them in utter contempt. "You vile, underhand, sneaky old…" 

Shinya waggled a finger at her. "Temper, temper…" 

Ginji was looking coldly at Amaya. Himiko did a quick check…all right, he looked normal, his eyes weren't going Raitei. "What were you saying to me?" 

The sorceress shrugged. "Nothing much. Only that since you're not the tested, you can do whatever you want. The trial spirits may decide to meddle with you on their own, though…" she finished candidly. A smirk. "And make sure you don't get lost." 

"What's the trial?" Himiko asked quickly, before they could vanish. 

But they began to fade away, anyway. "What time is it?" was Shinya's cryptic answer. 

Then Amaya snapped into focus. "Oh, and by the way, Himiko," she said sweetly. 

Himiko didn't like the look on her face. 

"If you want to pass today, you can't use your magic." 

"Magic?" Himiko asked, baffled. 

"Of course." Before either Ginji or Himiko could move, a tendril of power flew from the sorceress and touched Himiko on the forehead. A strange glow surrounded Himiko, and she gasped as she felt her once dormant power flood and flare in her veins… 

"After all, _you_ are a child of witches, too." 

"It begins," a voice crackled out authoritatively, almost unrecognizable as the soft, amused voice of before. Himiko and Ginji jumped and looked around…Amaya had disappeared. They could see no sign of the judge. 

"Himiko-chan?" Ginji asked, unnerved by the sudden voice and the revelation of Himiko's power. Which she couldn't use. 

Himiko shook her head and put a finger to her lips. Her testing had begun. 

A door swung open before them, a strange oaken one carved with numerous runes and symbols, a strange mix of ancient kanji, ideographs, Asian, medieval English, and the old script called Ogham. 

The white tiles around them disappeared…Quickly, Ginji sprang to where Himiko was standing. She shook her head and gestured him to stay slightly behind. Warily, he stepped back, and tiles appeared beneath his feet. 

They were now standing in a rectangle of about six tiles: three in two columns. Himiko stepped forward, and Ginji followed. As their feet left the ground, the tiles underneath disappeared…and appeared again where they stepped. 

And when they passed through the door, the judge's voice sounded again, expressionless, detached. 

"Midnight. Ghosting Hour." 

**…---…**

Ban was sitting silently still, all senses alert to try to catch anything from the place Ginji and Himiko were. But no sound reached his ears, no burst of magic reached his awareness. At one point, though, a crackle of magic energy; at another, the opening and closing of a heavy door. 

"What do you suppose that means?" Aesclepius, too, was listening. 

Ban shrugged. 

The snake spirit eyed the man whose arm housed him skeptically. For one who was supposed to be keeping watch, he didn't seem to be very alert. In fact, his eyes were closing. 

_He shouldn't be so arrogant_, Aesclepius was the only being who knew exactly how narrow some of Ban's escapes were. 

Minutes passed, and nothing happened. _Three hours_, the snake spirit thought. _By Birthplace time. But where those two are, how long is that? _

Suddenly, his eyes caught a swift, sudden movement. He reared, tongue forking out automatically. 

"Ban, look out!" 

Ban only rose in one fluid motion, eyes still closed. Wraiths, ghouls from every direction, sped towards the protective circle of the snake's body, ready to slam into them… 

Aesclepius let out what was the snake equivalent of a gasp as a shield of glowing power sprang up between the snake spirit and the attackers. The shield surrounded the entire circle the spirit had twisted himself into, a space around twenty feet in diameter. He was longer, of course, being a spirit…but that was beside the point. 

The attacking waves crashed harmlessly into the shield, held effectively at bay. 

Blue eyes opened, and Ban smirked up at the spirit. 

Aesclepius scowled inwardly. "You mean you were erecting that shield, the whole time?" 

"Aa." The man settled down again. 

Aesclepius relaxed, too, watching the pathetic efforts of the attackers. "Won't you get tired of holding it up?" 

"It's a standalone, it'll last for at least an hour. I'll have time to make another one," Ban said dismissively. 

Aesclepius grumbled, but there was a mix of pride in the hiss that came next. "Even after over thirteen years, you're full of surprises." 

**…---…**

_Ghosting Hour?! _

Ginji gulped nervously. He didn't like ghosts…they were one of the top things in his List of Things I'm Afraid Of. He couldn't shock them, or fight them… 

But he remembered something Ban said, once, when he'd confessed he was scared of ghosts…Ghosts are rumored to be made up of some sort of plasma, so why couldn't Ginji use that against them? 

_If worst comes to worst… _

His eyes fell on the shorter, slim girl walking slightly in front of him. A small frown etched itself on his face. 

Ban had told him all he knew about the curse. He'd described what Yamato had gone through, told Ginji everything for the first time…told him, too, all he'd tried to find out , and the feelings and twinges he got from the supernatural realm. Ginji had listened, given his own opinions…As February drew nearer, Ban had been jittery in the way only Ginji could see, and this week Ban had been downright high-strung. 

At first the original plan was to find Himiko on her birthday, whatever it took, and watch over her. It was Ginji who had suggested getting help. Ban had asked who, in a sarcastic, sharp tone. And for some reason, it had come out of Ginji's mouth. "Your grandmother." 

Ban had stopped pacing, stared, and Ginji had seen, with some apprehension, a flash of cold pride that could cost Himiko her life. Then Ban had lowered his head, and muttered, all right. 

Ginji still remembered the old lady…a short, sharp old woman, wizened and gray-haired, certainly ancient-looking, but nowhere near as ugly as the hag Shinya. She had Ban's pride, if not more. She also had his intense, blue eyes…signs of the German blood, and signs of the Jagan. 

She'd come when her grandson had called, to the secluded corner they'd picked, near Mugenjou. She could cross dimensions in less than a minute. And, upon request, she told them all she knew. 

She was the one who told them the finer points of the ritual of the Curse of the Last Children. Amaya and Shinya had been the original makers…in fact, once upon a time and long, long ago, they'd been the students of Ban's grandmother. While the Witch Queen knew nothing of the effects of the curse, she knew it could be stopped, could be annihilated before completion. And so she had taught Ban what to do, in the face of several scenarios; taught him a little more magic, and strictly checked to see if he still remembered the lessons he'd learned when he was younger. He had. 

Ginji shook his head at the memory and sighed. Watching your best friend spar with his grandmother was…an experience. 

Himiko saw his movement and turned, raising a questioning eyebrow at him. Nothing had come out to attack them yet. It was still misty around them, but below them was an endless blackness, while the tiles continued to appear and disappear beneath their feet. 

Ginji shook his head again, saying, "I'm fine." After a moment, he said, "Himiko-chan?" 

She nodded, indicating he should continue. 

"I may not be able to help you," he said softly. "I'm scared of ghosts." 

She smiled and squeezed his arm, as if to say, _It's all right. _

Suddenly, a shape appeared in the mists behind her. 

Moving quickly, Ginji stepped in front of her and spread his arms, defiantly facing down a tall man in a dark suit. He had slightly tanned skin and spiky hair...and he had a cigarette dangling from his mouth, smoking in almost the same manner Ban did. 

Suddenly Himiko was pushing past him, and he turned, startled, and he caught sight of her wide eyes and her shocked face, and some inner sense told him who the man was. A flash of magic throbbed behind the…image? Ghost? of Yamato before them, and Ginji yelled and grabbed Himiko's arm, trying to stop her from touching her brother. But her fingers brushed his coat sleeve and there was a loud, sucking noise… 

Their feet moved without their consent, carrying them into and through the ghost of the elder Kudo, and blackness and greenery crept into the pearly white mists, then there appeared a thatched roof, straw walls, and a matted floor… 

Two small figures were on the floor before them...one a young boy, around twelve or thirteen, sitting with his knees pulled up to his chest, the other a baby, no more than two years old. A girl. 

It was night, and it was fifteen years ago. 

The young Yamato moved, and red-rimmed eyes looked up and through the present Himiko and Ginji. He couldn't see them, they were only observers. 

It was going to be hard, keeping silent as your past played before you… 

They saw a tear roll down Yamato's face, and baby Himiko whimpered and woke. She rolled over and toddled towards her brother, forcing him to sit with his legs tucked under him as she crawled into his lap. Yamato smiled a sad smile at her, and shook his head. "No, Himiko." A vial appeared in his hand. "Go back to sleep." 

Scent floated up from the bottle and Himiko yawned, but stubbornly kept her eyes open. She stared belligerently at Yamato, her eyes not yet the distinct bluish-purple. 

Something in Yamato's face twisted…bending his head, he hid his face from his baby sister, and corking the vial, pulled her to his chest. She made a complaint at his roughness…relaxing his hold, he began to rock her back…and forth…back…and forth…and soon the baby was asleep. 

Yamato raised his head, and the present Himiko felt a pang in her heart at the sight of those familiar eyes, so full of sadness and pain. "They hate us," her brother whispered. Venom seeped into his voice, surprising and sad in one so young. 

"The villagers want to sacrifice us to save themselves. The witches want to hurt us and take us. And the others just want to complete the damn ritual." His eyes fell on his baby sister's face. "Himiko, what will we do?" A tear fell from his eyes, landing on her cheek. 

A muffled thump outside, then the ugly sound of someone being stabbed. The door opened… 

Yamato scrambled up, gazing in amazement at the man before him. 'Tou-chan!" 

"I got out," their father said, breathing ragged. From her view as invisible observer, Himiko gazed hungrily at this man…she'd never known her father. He was tall, strapping…worn out. His dark eyes had shadows under them, lines of worry creased his face. But he looked more like her aniki than he did her… 

"Tou-chan…" Yamato sobbed. And her father was hugging them both, tightly and desperately…then he pushed them away. "Yamato. Listen. I'm giving you this." He shoved a bag and a knapsack at his soon. "It's some clothes for you and Himiko, and all our savings. As well as the last remaining scrolls that teach the heritage of the Kudos." He held up a warning hand, stopping Yamato's exclamation. "Listen. Take Himiko, get out of here. Go somewhere far…Kyoto, or Shinjuku. They'll never find you there." He bowed his head, then lifted it again, maintaining eye contact with his son. "I won't be going with you. I have to get rid of these people, so they will do no more harm…" 

"No, Tou-chan! You have to come with us!" Yamato cried. Baby Himiko stirred. 

Their father shook his head, eyes sad. "No, Yamato. They'll kill all of us, if they're not stopped. Like they killed your mother, last year. They'll look for me, because I have a little sorcerer blood. But the villagers…not all of them know who you two are. A few…a meager few…want to give you a chance to grow up, to see if you'll inherit our powers. Only the ones in cahoots with the witches know of the curse. The other villagers just fear you…for your lineage. My and your mother's children…a fearful line indeed. I'm going to try to draw everyone away, to wipe their memories or…destroy, but I don't know if I can." His gaze bored into his son. 'The two of you have to escape. If they don't draw blood from you, the curse may never hit you. Maybe." 

"Tou-chan…" 

Noises from outside…their father's head snapped up, he pointed two fingers at them, and magic whirled around them as he began to transport them. "I love you." 

"Don't do it! Tou-chan!!" 

The flash of power took Himiko and Ginji with it…suddenly they were in the woods, keeping pace with a running Yamato, holding his baby sister tight, tears streaming down his face, the knapsack bumping against his thighs. 

He stopped, for a while, panting. Then there was a tremor in the air, and witches and villagers, some acting as if they were possessed, were surrounding them, and Ginji felt Himiko's nails dig into his arm, painfully… 

And there was a bright blast of power… 

Ginji nearly panicked; he threw one quick glance at the girl beside him. But no aura of power surrounded her, the blast had come from the boy Yamato, glowing and crackling, inflicting pain on the attackers around him. In that split second, they could see, almost, a shadowed doorway opening, and something red-eyed and malevolent, peering around from behind the boy… 

And again, he was running. 

He leaned against a tree, panting. Baby Himiko began to cry. 

"Don't cry," he begged his baby sister. "I'm here, I'll take care of you…" 

Shadows appeared at the edge of his vision. Yamato flung up an invisible shield so strong, it stopped the pursuers in their tracks. 

And the scene began to fade, and Himiko and Ginji heard the shadows cry, "You can't escape!" 

"Even if the ritual isn't finished, the Curse of the Last Children still holds!" 

Himiko's head was pounding from the remembering. 

The last they saw was a blast of flame as Himiko's father blew up the village, and part of the forest. A weary Yamato, still holding his baby sister, stumbled into Shinjuku, face set, as if he knew, now, that he would never see his father again. 

And they were left in the mists, a road stretching before them. The two stared at it, and were silent, overwhelmed by what they'd seen. Finally, Ginji broke the quiet. "Himiko-chan…we have to continue." 

Himiko nodded. Ginji glanced at her and saw she was shaking violently. He put an arm around her, hesitantly…she covered her face, but did not cry, nor make a sound. 

"You have to face these ghosts, Himiko-chan," he said softly, when the shaking had subsided. She nodded again, drawing in a deep, silent, calming breath, her hands falling from her face. He mustered the most reassuring grin he could and pulled her forward, and they walked down the road. "Ban-chan told me to take care of you…that's what I'm going to do." 

**…---…**

Aesclepius watched Ban carefully. The boy was up to something, he could tell. An hour had already passed, and he'd renewed the shield, but now he was staring at the persistent spirits outside intently. If the snake wasn't careful, Ban would… 

Do something stupid like rushing forwards and reaching out, grabbing a ghost and pulling it into the circle… 

Aesclepius jerked into action, ready to strike. 

But Ban was _talking_ to the ghost, asking something, and the ghost—a pretty pathetic-looking one, even in its current plasma state, was answering as quickly as it could. 

Ban shoved the ghost out again, and the others swarmed around it. Aesclepius wasn't too sure he wanted to take a closer look at what they were doing. To the snake's alarm, Ban slumped down, and put his head into his hands. 

"Ban?" 

The Get Backer looked up, and his eyes were dead and dull. "Ghosting Hour. I should have known." 

"What?" 

He looked away. "They're showing her her past." 

It hit Aesclepius, and he let out a hiss of air. "And…" The one event in the Lady Poison's past, that she hated the most… 

Ban shrugged, face closed and cold, his short moment of weakness over. 

There was a silence. The storm raged outside the shield. Spirits faced their ugly faces to the wall, moaning and growling. 

Ban's voice came out softly. "I wonder if she'll see everything." 

**

…---…

**

Himiko didn't know how to react…with happiness, bittersweetness, or nostalgia. The memories she was seeing were so many; not a blow-by-blow account of her life, but vivid bits of now and then… 

Like Yamato tucking her in at night, telling her stories from time-to-time… 

Him cooking, and her making fun of him, and his challenging her to learn… 

Yamato and she, she only around five, tongue between her teeth as he patiently…as patiently as he could, began to teach her how to read and write… 

Yamato presenting an eight-year-old Himiko with a small, stuffed toy. A puppy, which was even now by her bed in the apartment, a reminder of happier times long ago. He'd acquired it legally, the money he'd used was another matter. 

Yamato finally deciding to teach her how to mix the hundreds and hundreds of potions and perfumes, including the Seven. She saw him actually teaching her… 

She and her aniki coming across an arrogant, smart-mouthed teenager with purple glasses and lank brown hair… 

Himiko stiffened; apprehension crept into her eyes. She dreaded the memories that were to come next. 

**…---…**

To Ginji, it was like Himiko was in another place all together. She walked forward, ahead of him on the strange white-tile road, with mist and dark all around her and memories opening up before her, and while he saw them and heard them, he only observed…she seemed to be living in them, all over again. 

So he wrenched his gaze from the tapestry of thoughts forming around them, and kept his senses peeled for attackers or threatening forces. 

So far, none had come. 

Ginji glanced at Himiko once more, to check if she was all right. The memory she was seeing now was familiar to him, too…it was in the Honky Tonk, and everyone was there. The time before the IL retrieval. 

And then he heard it, a whispering echo. 

_"Raitei."_

He snapped his head to his right, but saw nothing. Then, there in the mists, two spots of bright, for a while…milky-white eyes that stared then vanished in a blink. 

_Oooh, shit. _

"Raitei." 

His left this time…carefully he stretched out an arm and enough lightning gathered in a controlled mass around his fist to penetrate a little way off… 

_"Why are you here, Raitei?" _

_Damn!_ Right in front of him, a shadow, a wraith, a thing of indeterminate gender, with nondescript features and a transparent mass of tangled hair…through the shade, he could see Himiko, walking on without him. 

"Himiko-chan!" he moved to push the spirit aside, felt its strange prickly-coldness as he went through it. 

And still it was in front of him, staring intently at him with thin lips and milky-white eyes. 

_"Why are you here, Raitei, why are you here?" _

The lips didn't move but the voice echoed in his mind… 

"Call me Ginji, not Raitei," he said, trying to keep himself and his voice steady, his eyes reflecting panic but at the same time following Himiko, who was slowly getting further away… 

_"Why are you here, Raitei, why are you here?"_

"Call me…" 

"Then, _Ginji,_ why are you here?" 

Damn but that voice was familiar. Ginji spun and found himself facing himself—except he didn't know if it was a ghost of what he used to be, or what he could have become had he lost control of his alternate self. 

Raitei cocked his head at Ginji, no emotion in those brilliant blazing eyes. "Well? Why are you here?' 

"Ban-chan told me to come," Ginji said. He snuck a glance over his shoulder; Himiko had stopped and was looking at the present memory curiously. 

"Oh. Is that why." Raitei began to walk past him. Quickly Ginji stayed ahead of him, looking at this reflection of himself that was so unlike him yet was part of him. He also noticed that the strange spirit was gone. 

After a few steps, Raitei spoke again. "Why are you here, Raitei?" 

Ginji stared. "You're Raitei. I'm not." 

"But I'm you," Raitei countered. "Why are you here?" 

"I told you. It's because Ban-chan told us…me to. I have to protect Himiko-chan." 

A weird smile quirked the side of Raitei's mouth. "Protect her. I see." 

"You're not out of me, are you," Ginji suddenly said. He stopped and Raitei stopped; he stared into the eyes of the other. "You're not Raitei, really." 

Raitei smirked. "Maybe." And suddenly like the lightning they used, he moved and was behind the still-unmoving Himiko, and he smiled a feral smile and raised a fist to strike her. "Why are you…" 

"DON'T HURT HER!" Lightning met lightning…a deafening crackle that didn't hurt anything, and Ginji's brown eyes were boring into this being's own, arm raised in a frontal block and effectively keeping the other's arm at bay. Lightning played all around them, yet Himiko didn't seem to notice. "What did you do that for?!" 

"Don't lose your temper." Raitei grinned maliciously down at Ginji. 

Ginji shoved him away, and folded his arms. "Whatever you are, you're not me. Raitei, I mean. Neither of us is malicious." His stare was sure and cold. "Whatever you want from me, tell me, don't take it out on my friends." 

"Then tell me why you are here." 

Ginji was confused. "But I told you already! Ban-chan told me to protect Himiko, and I went with her!" 

"Why?" 

The answer was instant, not even thought of. "Because she's my friend." 

And Raitei-who-was-not smiled again, but it wasn't threatening or malicious. Just a smile. "That's the complete answer." 

Ginji stared in disbelief. "Is that all?" 

And the shape of Raitei dropped away and the wraith was there again, and this time its lips were curved in a small smile. _"You passed my test. And satisfied my curiosity."_ The test element bowed and faded backwards, away from Ginji, away from Himiko. _I'll let you stay with her._

Ginji shivered as he gazed after it. Had that been the judge? No, the voices were different…no matter, he'd find out sooner or later. Imagine Ban-chan having to deal with things like this, in that life of his before, when magic was all around him… 

Ginji turned to find Amaya and Shinya, standing in front of Himiko with looks of evident glee on their faces. 

**

…---…

**

Himiko was wary, and confused. After she'd seen herself and her aniki meeting with Ban, she'd seen several scenarios from their years as a team, and then she'd jumped to the time she'd met Jackal, then the time she'd met the Get Backers, then the other memorable cases after… 

One of the most prominent memories of her life…hadn't been shown. 

This was foremost in her mind as she looked at the memories swirling around and beside her, then suddenly she'd been stopped, and Amaya and Shinya had appeared in front of her. "Something missing, Himiko-chan?" 

She _almost_ growled. 

"Ooh, Shinya, I think she wants to see a certain event." 

Her fists clenched. _The dirty old…_ "Himiko-chan!" A figure appeared beside her; Ginji's worried and oddly pale face was turned to her. 

"Oh, you're here, too," Amaya said sweetly. "You can both watch." 

"What?" Ginji asked too late. 

A memory opened, and sucked them in… 

A strike so fast they barely saw it, a shower of blood, a body hitting the floor and Ban standing bloodied over Yamato's corpse, lowering his hand and staring at it with an unfathomable expression on his face. And a cheerful girl's call that turned into a scream… 

Before Ginji could cry "Stop!" Himiko had snapped her head up and glared at the witches before her. Unnerved by the steel in her gaze, they took a step back, and the memory was broken. "What?" 

Himiko opened her mouth, shut it, and glared again. Damn the silence she must maintain… 

"She wants to see everything," a voice familiar to Ginji said. It could be heard physically now, and the test wraith appeared again, floating above Amaya and Shinya. 

The witches stiffened. "No." 

"She has a right…" Ginji began. 

"It's against the rules," the wraith cut in smoothly. "You know it; no omissions, no manipulating the memories you chose so that the truth is hidden." A surreal eye pinned the two sternly. "One more infraction and you answer to the judge." 

In a huff, the two witches disappeared, and to the bewilderment of the two watchers, the memory began again. 

And this time, for the first time, Himiko found out why things had gone the way they did. 

She saw Yamato fall to his knees, gasping for breath. Saw, with an innate sense she never knew she had, the aura of waxing and waning magic as the curse tried to take effect on him, saw the magic burning through his veins… 

Saw again the shadowy veiled doorway and the red-eyed creature trying to get her aniki, the door opening wider and wider… 

Ban came in and she saw him panic; she heard her brother tell him what was happening. 

Heard him tell Ban to kill him. 

"No, Yamato!" 

"Take care of Himiko!" 

"Damn it, Yamato, quit delaying!" 

_"Promise me you'll take care of Himiko!" _

Blue eyes glared. "I _will!_ Now let me go get help!" 

"No, you have to kill me. Now." 

"Idiotic bas—" 

Her brother lunged at Ban, grasped him by the collar…beside Himiko, Ginji clenched his fists. "Ban…listen…we have to be two, Himiko and I, we have to both be alive for us to have no choice…" 

"What?" Ban whispered, staggering under the older man's weight. 

Yamato struggled and fell forward, his face twisted in agony. "For the curse to succeed…I don't know how I know, but we both need to be alive…if it gets me now, it will get her one day, for sure. But if you kill me…" A gasp, a spurt of magic, Yamato's eyes seemed to change, then they changed back. "If you kill me before it takes me, I won't transform…I won't be taken. And the evil won't happen, and when her time comes…Ban, promise me you'll be there for her, when it's her turn…" The aura flared around Yamato again, and he shook his head violently. "No! No…damn it, Ban, _kill me before it's too late!" _

There was a harsh, sobbing cry…it had come from _Ban_…and then he struck. 

Himiko covered her eyes; she already knew the rest. 

Then she heard Ginji's gasp, and felt a pair of hands take her by the shoulders. "Himiko!" 

She looked up into the face of her brother. 

"Himiko, ssh!" Yamato cautioned. "Don't…make…a sound! Amaya and Shinya don't know I'm here. Listen, Himiko, you have to pass, you hear me? Don't fail the testing…the curse must not get you." His eyes…they were so different now. Ageless, immortal. But it was him. His chest constricted…she wanted to hug him, cry, say his name over and over… 

"No, Himiko." He hugged her, though, because he knew. "You can't fail. Please. You can't fail. No matter how tempted you are…" He held her at an arm's length and stared at her straight in the eye. "Your life is not the only one at stake if you succumb to the curse." 

Himiko pressed a hand to her mouth to stifle the questions rising in her. _What…what does he mean? What is this curse? Why…_

"I have to go." Her eyes widened. _No!_ "Himiko, I'm dead. But I'm always watching over you. This is the only time I'll be able to speak to you, ever. Don't fail me." A ghost of a smile brushed over his face. "Promise me." 

The same thing he asked Ban, in the recent memory so long ago… 

"Please, I don't want you to be destroyed, or to destroy. I know I'm not making any sense…but all the answers will come later." His steady gaze calmed the turmoil within her, and gently, he let go of her shoulders. "They're going to tempt you. Taunt you. Provoke you. But don't succumb. I've made my point already, I guess…" He kissed her forehead, and gave a faint half-smile. "I love you little sister. I've been watching you, and I'm proud of what you are." 

Tears leaked out of her eyes, but she made no sound. She couldn't risk it. She gave her aniki one last hug…one last goodbye with her eyes. 

Yamato smiled once more, then glanced at Ginji. "Ginji." 

Ginji started. "How…" 

He only grinned and said, "Say hi to Ban." 

"KUDO YAMATO!" 

Energy struck where Yamato had once been, Amaya and Shinya suddenly appeared in a rage. They advanced on Himiko, but then Ginji was in the way, crackling electricity. They stopped, and glared. "What did your brother tell you?" 

"Nothing of importance," a soft voice came. It was the judge…but he still couldn't bee seen. "Kudo Yamato spoiled nothing; did not even give technically useful advice. His being here for that short time is not to be recorded as cheating or interference." A pause. "If I remember correctly…that was the last memory you had in store for her, wasn't it?" 

"Yes." The hag and the sorcerer were still glaring at Ginji and Himiko. 

"Then, I suppose it's my turn." And there was the sound of a heavy opening door and a radiance blinded them, and they felt themselves splitting and tearing and falling and twisting and tumbling through bright darkness… 

"Pass." 

**

…---…

**

Suddenly, the raging ghosts around Aesclepius disappeared, and a rumble shook the Birthplace. Ban jumped in alarm and spread his arms as that the shield he'd been constructing threatened to fall down. His blue eyes flicked up and around, sharp with worry. It was only the end of the second hour…so what was that supposed to mean? 

A hollow magical sound, and he turned his head and saw a portal open behind him. Aesclepius hissed a welcome…Ban heard his own voice give a shout of relief as Ginji and Himiko stumbled through. 

Himiko fell forward onto her hands and knees, taking deep, gasping breaths…Ginji fell awkwardly beside her, but looked up at Ban with a shaky smile. "Hi, Ban-chan." 

"What happened?" the other demanded. 

Ginji gave him a thumbs up. "I heard the judge say pass." 

Despite the initial writhing mass of worry in the pit of his stomach, Ban smiled. "Knew you could do it." His gaze slid to Himiko. She was still on all fours, and hadn't looked up; her eyes seemed glazed and a little unfocused. 

He took down the shield and absorbed the extra energy, knowing they were safe for a while, since the first trial was over. Then he was squatting at their side, and only his hard grip on Ginji's shoulder showed how worried he had been. He touched Himiko on the shoulder gently. "Himiko?" 

And she looked up, and met his eyes…and when he saw hers, Ban knew what she'd seen. He looked away and began to rise. 

But the slight pressure on his hand stopped him, and the soft, "Ban." Ginji helped her into a sitting position; she was too weary to do it alone. And when she spoke once more, it was like she hadn't used her voice for years and years and years, even though it had only been two hours. 

"Ban…" 

He sat down in front of her, and when she looked at him again, her eyes were full of shame, sorrow, and silent apology. 

"I'm sorry." 

_To be continued..._   
  
**A/N:** I think I got the age gap between Yamato and Himiko wrong here. Oh well. Also, someone tell me if I got Ban's grandmother right. 

You'll notice that Yamato's death scene isn't exactly what happened, I edited that part some.

And I'm not sure, but I _could_ have taken the idea of the Birthplace's description...the endless universe filled with stars etc...from the book "The Grey King" by Susan Cooper. She has a place similar to that, in there. 

**Misao Seta, NekoRanmaHP-AnimeKaizen, The Invader Androgynous, OptiMoose, yuki's first love, Atropos' Knife, Peter the Muggle, and Ora**: Thanks for reviewing! Hope you liked the first trial. 

**sq1993**: It's based on what I've found on the internet...so I guess mostly on the manga. More or less what's sure is that something will happen on Himiko's seventeenth birthday, and that her curse may have something to do with witches. Glad you enjoyed the Ban/Himiko fics. :D 

**shimmer**: Haloo, kababayan! It's not exactly h/b, I'm trying to keep it pairing-free (Note: Keyword=TRYING), but if you see hints, have a nice time. Baka na rin gagawin kong h/b sa hulihan, hehehe. :D Kung gusto mo, may dalawa akong h/b na fanfic sa account ko. Enjoy. 

**ayumu-in-blue**: Hello, glad you liked the prologue. Yeah, actually, while writing that part, I realized it was like Ban's famous line, too. Oh well. Thanks for reviewing! 

**limelie**: As said before, the Voodoo curse in this fic is just my...um, "interpretation" from the bits and pieces picked up on the 'net. It's not the real one. Glad you liked the prologue, hope you liked the first chapter! 

**Riyuji.Raicho**: -glares- Siraulong bata. -WHAPAK!- hehe...hi, sensei! Yes, I think Aesclepius is my favorite character here. Hehehe. 


	3. 3:00: Devil's Hour

  
  
**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything, in case you don't know. 

**Chapter Two: 3:00 AM, Devil's Hour **

Something was wrong. He woke up, all of a sudden, some innate sense telling him that something was wrong. He looked at the alarm clock beside his bed and gasped, sitting up suddenly. 

_2:15 AM_

They were supposed to have gathered together hours ago! Why hadn't the alarm clock run? Why hadn't anyone woken him up? 

Kazuki practically jumped out of bed and ran for the door. Already he was dressed…they'd agreed to be prepared. He ran out and locked the door…and didn't see the sparks of magic floating from the alarm clock, to be followed by the soft cackling of a vicious old hag. 

**

…---…

**

The Honky Tonk door banged open before Kazuki and Juubei reached it, and Paul rushed out and stopped short. The three faced each other, panting heavily; the samurai doctor, sensing Kazuki's unrest, had met him on the way. 

"I just woke up…" 

"Why didn't anyone call me?" Kazuki said at the same time, upset, and the café owner stared. 

"You, too?" 

"Kazuki, what's going on?" Juubei turned from one speaker to the other, confused. 

Kazuki was still catching his breath. "Today is Himiko-san's…the Lady Poison's, seventeenth birthday." His lips pressed together in a tight, thin line, before he continued. "Midou-san let it slip some time ago that something would happen to her, today. Because she's cursed." 

"Has anyone found the two?" Paul interrupted. 

Kazuki turned back to him, worried. "You mean the Get Backers haven't shown up, either?" 

Paul shook his head, clearly as worried as the thread-wielder was. "They've been missing for three days. Himiko's been gone the whole week." 

"Where are the others?" Kazuki asked, looking around frantically. Juubei cocked his head, tracking his friend's movements through the sound of the bells. "What others?" 

Kazuki got his cellphone from his pocket, and Paul, berating himself for not thinking of it sooner, did likewise. As they dialed different numbers, Kazuki replied, "We decided yesterday that we would meet before midnight and go to Himiko-san's apartment, even if Midou-san and Ginji-san wouldn't show up. In case we can do something to help Himiko-san." The ringing stopped as someone picked up on the other end. "Give the phone to Shido-san, please!" 

**

…---…

**

Ban, Himiko, and Ginji were seated, leaning against Aesclepius. Again the men were on either side of her, like some sort of guard. Ginji was dozing, weary from lack of sleep...he'd only stayed awake long enough to tell Ban what happened. The story of the Raitei-creature had startled both Ban and Himiko, and inside, Ban wondered if he would be tested, too. 

Ban and Himiko were silent as their friend slept, but it was a comfortable silence, one they hadn't had in many years. Ban had been caught completely by surprise when Himiko had apologized, and for once, he was speechless and transparent, the startled flash in his eyes as obvious as the grin on Ginji's face that emerged when those words came out. 

But he hadn't said anything, only pushed up his glasses and muttered, "You two look like hell." 

A slight return pressure on her hand had accompanied this, and Himiko had known her apology had been accepted. 

Right now she was gazing out at the stars, marveling at their beauty lighting up the absolute blackness, streaks and clouds and glows and pinpricks of multicolored light. It was eerie, being suspended in the middle of this infinity, and at the same time it was a mind-numbing wonder. Ban was staring, too, and idly in his mind he named the stars he saw. 

"Twenty more minutes," Aesclepius' hissed words broke the silence. Ban nodded in acknowledgement, then grimaced. "I need a smoke," he muttered. 

"Go ahead, I don't mind." 

Ban half grinned at her, producing a cigarette and lighting it. "Heh. You never liked it when Yamato and I would. Why the change?" 

"More like accepting the inevitable," the girl retorted. Then she saw Ban's—Yamato's lighter. 

At her sudden silence, Ban glanced up and saw her looking at the lighter, and he remembered…"You never knew I had it, did you?" 

She shook her head, and hesitated, before asking softly. "Can I see?" 

He dropped it into her palm, and watched as she turned it over and over in her hands, and ran her fingers over the engraved "KY". Her eyes were not really seeing the lighter…she was remembering other things, many things. 

Ban looked away, expelling a thin trail of smoke…a soft voice broke through his thoughts, as she asked, "He gave it to you?" 

"Aa," he answered. "The day before…" he trailed off, unsure whether he should continue…or unable to. Himiko looked up and gave him a tiny smile, and he didn't need to continue. Except… 

"I always wondered why," he said in a low voice. 

She said nothing, wordlessly handing the lighter back to him. He looked at it in her hand for a few seconds, then shook his head. "Keep it." 

"I don't smoke," she began. 

"It's all we've got left of him, and he's your brother," Ban said firmly. 

"He gave it to you," she insisted stubbornly, pushing it towards him. "And you'll use it more than I will." 

He smiled around the cigarette and leaned back, still not taking the lighter. 'Then give it to me later. You might change your mind." 

_If there is a later_…Himiko didn't try to argue anymore, she just pocketed the lighter and settled against Aesclepius' body. "Fine, I will," she muttered without rancor. 

Suddenly, a noise that sounded remarkably like many people banging on a door echoed through the Birthplace. Himiko and Ban got up warily. Ginji awoke and stood. "Ban-chan, is it time?" 

"No, it isn't," Aesclepius said. The three looked towards the snake, spirit, where his head was resting on his body. He swiveled one large eye towards them. "I think some people are outside Himiko's apartment, and they're trying to get in." 

"How does he know?" Ginji asked. 

"He can see over dimensions…he is a spirit, after all. Make sure they don't get in," Ban instructed Aesclepius.

"I can't," the snake said calmly. 

"What?! If you don't…" 

There was the sound of a door breaking, and a ripple in the space beyond the barrier. Angrily, Ban thrust some magic outwards, forming a corridor, in which materialized…. 

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING HERE?!" Ban shouted at Kazuki, Shido, Paul, Juubei, Emishi, HEVN, and Natsumi. 

"Himiko-san's our friend, too, you know," Kazuki said coolly as he brushed himself off. The others were staring around in amazement. 

Ban was livid. "And you're throwing your lives away without knowing what you're up against?! Dammit, these aren't the kind of fights you're used to!!" 

"Ban…" Himiko said quietly, trying to silence him. 

Ban ignored her. "Samurai! If you die, who's going to watch after MakubeX?" He whirled on Shido. "You, monkey trainer! Do you really want to leave Madoka alone for the rest of her life?" 

Shido's eyes flashed angrily. "I was thinking about that, but she made me go. The only reason she's not here is I didn't let…" 

They were all distracted by Natsumi's scream. Whirling around, they saw her shrink away from the wall of magic, and saw the gathering legion of ghosts outside it. 

"Ban! Why are they here early?" Himiko cried. Quickly, Ginji dashed to the wall. Ban was startled when he stuck his hand out of the magic and sent a blast of electric plasma into the ghosts. A chorus of inhuman wails and screams rose, eerie and frightening. HEVN clapped her hands over her ears, wincing. 

"Didn't think he could do that," Ban muttered. "The magic attracted them," he answered Himiko. 

"Inside my circle, quick!" Aesclepius hissed. 

Hurriedly, Ban, Himiko and Ginji hustled the others into Aesclepius' protective coils. As soon as they were all in, Ban's corridor collapsed, and the ghosts were kept at bay by a shield of the snake spirit's own. 

"Ban-kun, what's happening here?" HEVN demanded. For once, she was wearing something that didn't accent or reveal her huge chest…a plain, loose sweater and jeans. 

His face was creased with annoyance and anger…furiously, he rubbed at his face. "We don't have enough time," he ground out through gritted teeth. 

"The portal's coming," the ever-watchful snake interrupted. "The inrush of magic attracted it, too." 

Ban cursed. "You'll be having your second trial early," he informed Himiko. 

"Trial?" Natsumi asked. 

"Any idea what it is?" Himiko queried, tensing up, senses tingling. 

"Three AM…Three AM…what are the old legends?" Ban trailed off, and disgust crossed his face. "Damn. Devil's Hour. We're going to need help…no, not you, Ginji," he shook his head at his partner, who had been about to volunteer. 

"But Ban-chan…" 

"You're too tired, you helped Himiko in her first trial." He turned to the newcomers. "Monkey trainer, or thread spool. Or even Joker or the samurai." 

"What is going on?" Juubei asked. 

"Please, just listen to him, one of you…" Ginji pleaded. Real worry was in his voice, something none of them had seen in their Emperor in a long time. 

"I'll go," Shido growled. 

Before Ban could protest, the portal opened beside him, sucking both him and Himiko in. Aesclepius gave a frantic, reflexive hiss, and Shido leapt in and followed, just before it closed. 

Ginji blinked and looked around at the remaining people. They stared expectantly back at him. 

**

…---…

**

The hazy setting they were in was irritatingly familiar…to Himiko, at least. "I'm beginning to hate places like this," she muttered, arms crossed as she surveyed the ruins of a Mayan temple. 

"As long as I don't have to save you from getting killed, again." Ban said from where he was standing. 

Shido chuckled inwardly when Himiko gave the other man a raised eyebrow and quipped, "That's funny, I thought that was the whole point of this thing." 

_Himiko one, Midou zero. _

Ban opened his mouth to retort indignantly, and Shido cut across him. "What is this place?" His bat echolocation had begun surveying the area in its own fashion…the place had ceased to become hazy and was beginning to solidify, in a weird sort of way. "It's…not virtual reality." 

"Well spotted, monkey man," Ban said sarcastically. He ignored Shido's growl. "This isn't anything like MakubeX's virtual reality. I told you, you've never seen this sort of thing before. It's magic." 

Shido snorted. "I have run across magic before…" 

"Nothing like this," Ban countered. "Not this strong." A wry, bitter smirk twisted the corner of his mouth. "Magic like this just can't be found in our dimension." 

"This is too unreal…" 

"Proves how narrow-minded you are." 

"Why you…" 

"Ban. Shido." Himiko's exasperated tones stopped the brawl before it could begin, and the young girl glared up at the two men. "If I'm going to be stuck with you for the next three hours, I don't want the two of you to try to kill each other. It gets annoying at some point." 

"I will if he quits baiting me," Shido muttered. Ban, for a wonder, just shoved his hands into his pockets and nodded. 

"Thank you," Himiko sighed. She glanced around uncomfortably. "Amaya and Shinya aren't here. I wonder when the trial starts." 

"It started the moment you arrived," a smooth voice inserted. Ban and Shido jumped; Himiko made no move. "It's the judge," she told them. 

"Lady Amaya and Lady Shinya will not be appearing right now," the voice continued. "Your objective: blood must not be drawn from Kudo Himiko You will understand, once the obstacles begin to appear." The voice faded away, and they knew they were alone again. 

"'Blood must not be drawn…' What, is Jackal going to appear and start slashing at me?" the girl asked. 

"Unless he's from hell, no," Ban replied. 

"What?" 

"Three AM, by legend, is Demon's Hour. I'm guessing they're the obstacles," the Get Backer replied, and Himiko suddenly noticed tendrils of magic curling out of him, seeking out other auras. 

"Demons. Damn. How strong?" Shido asked, eyes closed, senses alert. 

"I don't know." 

"Ban, obviously the rules Amaya and Shinya put on me in the first trial…the ones of keeping silent and all, don't apply anymore," Himiko said, vials beginning to appear in her hand. She, too, was carefully on guard. "Can you teach me how to use my magic?" 

The tendrils dissipated. "No," Ban said sharply. 

Himiko stared. "O—kay," she said slowly. "Why?" 

"Just no." 

"Midou Ban…" 

"You've hidden enough from her. I think you should tell her this time," Shido put in calmly. 

"No once asked for your opinion," Ban snapped. 

"You're just pissed because you know I'm right." 

"Bas—" 

"Ban," Himiko cut in levelly. "I just want to know why." 

He sighed, closed his eyes, and set out trails of magic again, motioning Himiko to stay near him and Shido. "It's only a theory," he said reluctantly. Himiko did not look at him, searching for signs with her eyes, but she cocked her head and listened. "Ginji told me what you saw in the first trial. And he mentioned the first time Yamato used magic." 

"The first…" 

"When he drove off the villagers and witches that teleported to where you were. That must have been the first time…" He shifted slightly. "When I lived with you two, I saw him use magic, several times. When he thought no one was looking. I only realized now, every time he used it, I seemed to sense the same thing you saw…a dark doorway, opening, and a monster trying to get out. It wasn't some tortured part of Yamato's psyche," he amended, seeing the look on Himiko's face. "I think it was the curse. Every time he used his magic, he became susceptible to the curse. The first time he used it, it opened the doorway that could have protected him." He looked at her. "The only time you've ever shown signs of magic was during that time with the cards, and that was a reaction, not conscious…" 

Suddenly he grabbed her arm and pulled her forcefully away; at the same time Shido moved with inhuman speed and struck out, hands suddenly morphed into claws, striking and tearing skin. Something shrieked in pain… 

The three stared at the fallen body of a grotesquely ugly, humanoid creature. Himiko took one look at the black hooked claws, the sharp teeth, and the spiked tail, and knew that had Ban and Shido not acted right away, at least one of the lethal things would have found its mark. 

"Demons. I told you." Ban nudged the body with his foot, grimacing distastefully. 

Himiko shuddered. "It looks almost human." Minus the obviously demonic appendages and pitch-black skin, the creature might have passed for human. 

"Hey. What's this?" Shido bent to examine the dark, thick fluid oozing out of the deep slash marks on its throat and chest. 

"It's blood, monkey trainer. And I suggest you keep your hand off it, and wipe it off your claws…could be corrosive." 

"Yech." Shido tore a piece off his pants cuff and wiped his claws, before letting his hand return to normal. 

Suddenly there was a hiss, and they looked at the body and saw the blood of the demon drip onto the stone beneath, and when the liquid touched the stone a vision leapt out at them… 

Evil, inhuman cackling, the temple at night…eerie, sinuous movements of dancers against a fire and the scream of sacrificial offerings at the altar, blood, lots of it, spraying everyone in a sickly crimson rain… 

"Stop!" Ban's voice jerked them all out of it. For a moment, the only sound was that of there ragged, shell-shocked breathing. Sweat beaded their foreheads, and they stared at each other with wide eyes.

"What was that?" Shido voiced. 

In one fluid motion Himiko moved and sprang, then there was a _woosh_ of flame and a scream behind Ban. Both men turned to see the charred body of another demon dissolve into ash, Himiko standing on the steps of the temple. Ban saw, with a jolt, that there was a lengthwise rip in her sleeve. 

"Himiko!" 

"It's not bleeding," she said, glancing at it calmly. "Not even a scratch." She tore her glance away from the corpse and motioned them to do the same. "I think the visions when the blood drips serve as distractions, for the next attackers to get ready," she explained. "And…there's something up there." 

"What?" They looked where Himiko was pointing…up the steps of the temple. 

"Uh…and so?" Ban asked. 

"We have to go up there." 

"How do you know?" 

"May as well," Shido shrugged. "We're not doing much down here." 

"Fine. Let's go." Ban and Shido climbed to where Himiko was, then the three turned and began to ascend the stairs. 

**…---…**

"This is so weird," Natsumi said softly, when Ginji had finished speaking. She was hugging herself as if against sharp cold, staring beyond Aesclepius' barrier at the roiling mass of supernatural creatures outside. If she looked a little past the ones immediately in her line of sight, she could see a morbid knot of ghosts imitating some sacrificial ritual… 

Ginji looked at her as she shivered and turned away. "Are you okay, Natsumi-chan?" 

The girl smiled weakly and nodded. 

"So what do we do, while we're here?" HEVN asked. 

Abruptly, part of the barrier flickered. A spirit broke through with a roar, and made a beeline for Aesclepius' head… 

The snake struck, but his fangs closed over emptiness. Strings surrounded the ghost, sliced into it and yanked it out and back through the barriers. Needles chased after it, hitting several stray others as they flew. 

Ginji gave a small grin at Kazuki and Juubei, electricity ready at his hands. "Nice work, Kazu-chan, Juubei." 

"The ghosts are different in this dimension, aren't they? They're actually tangible." Kazuki observed. 

"How did it get through?" Juubei asked. 

"The disadvantage of having a barrier that holds up for more than an hour, is that certain areas seem to weaken, at times," Aesclepius muttered. 

"Then we'll be fighting for some time," Emishi said, stretching his whip between his hands. "We might need first-aid supplies." 

"Can you get some?" the snake asked all of them, in general. 

"We can get out?" Ginji asked, surprised. 

Aesclepius' body shifted, as if he were shrugging. 'I can transport some people. All you have to do to come back is open Himiko's door." 

"I'll go," Paul said, moving forward. "There's some other things I want to get." 

Natsumi turned. "Master, will you need help?" 

"I don't think so…" 

"Let her go. And I suggest you take one more, for extra protection," Aesclepius butted in. The snake's eyes, with a stare unnervingly like Ban's, held them sternly. "Other things may follow you out of these dimensions, if you're not careful. You and Natsumi may not be enough to hold them off." 

"I'll go with you two, Master, Natsumi-chan," Ginji said, moving to stand with the two. He looked at the others. "If Ban-chan comes back before we do, tell him where I went." 

"Hai. Be careful," HEVN reminded them anxiously. 

There was a ripple and Aesclepius yawned…and the three were gone. 

**…---…**

It took a long time for them to reach the top of the temple. The place was eerily silent, their footsteps echoing on the solid stone. Shido's eyes were still closed, sensing for trouble and picking his way up the stairs in ways only he could perform, while Ban continued to slowly let out magic, bit by bit, covering what Shido could not sense. It was left to Himiko to use the usual means of detection…sight, smell, hearing, or feel. 

They reached the top without mishap, and the men lowered their defenses…slightly. 

Before them was the main section of the temple. The wall obstructed most of their view inside, but three arches were set into it, instead of doorways. From what they could see, the room beyond was empty, with another set of arches in the opposite wall. 

"What now?" Shido asked. 

Himiko cocked her head. "It's…whatever it is, it's in there." She pointed at the archways, but shook her head when the Beastmaster stepped forward. "Wait, Shido…something's not right." 

Ban shook his head warningly at Himiko. "Don't try to sense more…you might leak magic." He stretched out his hand, and held it in front of each arch, palm out. A faint shimmer of magic surrounded his fingertips, and a slight frown creased his forehead. He lowered his hand and stepped back. "Everyone take one arch each," he ordered. "Don't enter yet." 

They positioned themselves, standing just in front of the arch they'd chosen. A strange, oppressive feeling seemed to roll off the empty spaces. 

"On my count, attack the space in the middle, around head height," Ban said softly. Uncertainly, Himiko brought out her Flame and Acceleration perfumes…Ban shook his head when he saw the latter. "Don't use that. Not yet." Relieved, she pocketed the last one. 

"One… 

"Two… 

_"Three._ Snakebite!" 

Ban's arm shot forward with deadly strength, crushing breastbone and heart, flames poured out of a gaping mouth and intestines burned along with flesh, blood spurted from a gashes and cuts inflicted by animal claws. 

The only sounds that followed were soft, inhuman groans, and three bodies fell from the previously blank spaces, ending up sprawled on the ground. Three more demons, again slightly humanoid, had been hanging invisible in the doorways, ready to kill had they passed through. 

The three diverted their faces from the mirages rising from the blood on the floor, facing each other instead. Ban wiped his hand clean of gore on his shirt, as did Shido…Himiko corked her Flame poison, thankful that the inner anatomy of demons was about as fireproof as a normal man's. 

"Any more left?" Shido asked. 

Ban tipped his head, then answered in the negative. "Can't sense any." He walked forward. "I'll go first." 

"Hey…" Ban ignored Himiko and walked straight on through the middle arch. 

She blew out an exasperated breath. "I don't need that much protection…" 

"Considering we're supposed to keep you from getting any wounds, I think you do," Shido remarked. 

"It's my trial. I'm the one supposed to complete it, not have it completed for me," the girl retorted angrily. 

Shido looked at her. "Then you won't get very far." A slight, ironic smile twitched at the corner of his mouth. "Animals depend on others to survive. It's no dishonor." 

Himiko flushed and turned her attention back to Ban. She would have stubbornly continued arguing, saying she was not an animal…but she knew that was not his point. 

On the other side, Ban turned and jerked his head at them, signaling them to come in. 

They walked forward, and suddenly Himiko whispered, "Shido, pass the middle arch." 

"Huh?" 

"Just do it." 

As they walked through the arch, they felt a ripple of magic skim over them. Instinctively, Shido pushed Himiko forward, and with an exclamation she stumbled through, nearly falling to her knees. The Beastmaster landed lightly from a leap beside her. 

"Shido, that wasn't even harmful!" 

But Ban was staring behind them. "Holy—" 

"What?" Both look backwards, but saw nothing out of the ordinary. 

Apart from the fact that there was only one arch remaining in the wall. 

Shido let out an exclamation and Himiko asked, startled, "What happened?" 

"I missed that," Ban said, sounding angry at himself. "Should've seen…" He looked at Himiko. "You're lucky you chose the middle arch. If you went through the other arches, I don't think you would've ended up in the same place I was." He spat on the floor. "Too many damn traps everywhere…" 

"Which is why we have to be careful." The two men noticed that the girl's voice was no longer right beside them, and they turned to find her examining the weapons hanging on the wall, previously unnoticed. 

"Oi! You don't know if those are spelled!" Ban griped. 

"I'm not touching." Himiko rolled her eyes. She pointed to the plaques hanging beneath the deadly objects. "All of them say they're for use against demons." 

Ban squatted and peered closely at them, while Shido stood with hands in his pockets, examining the sharp swords, polearms, daggers, arrows… 

"These are all from different times and countries," Ban said, straightening and pushing up his shades. A frown creased his forehead. "Very little are Mayan, or even American Indian." 

"And…?" Himiko prompted. 

"It looks suspicious." 

"I think we should use them…" 

"It could be a trap." 

"No, listen," she shook her head, and he shut up. Here eyes were gleaming strangely, like a child who'd just solved a puzzle. "It took us ten minutes to climb the steps." 

"It did?" Shido asked, surprised. 

"Roughly ten minutes," she conceded. "When we left the Birthplace, there were ten minutes until three AM." 

"Get to the point," Ban ordered. 

"I think I—we, were supposed to be transported here, in this room, not outside. Since we left the Birthplace too early, we were transported to a spot before this one. Suppose I had been alone…the tests would have been prepared for that. The Poisons would not have been enough, then. The trial was made by the witches who want me…but it's actually made fair, in a weird way. I think the weapons were put here so I can use them." 

"All right," Ban said at last, after a while. He glared at her over his purple glasses. "But I get to pick first." 

Himiko nodded reluctantly, and she and Shido stepped back. Ban scanned the array of weapons, leaned forward, and jerked out a long dagger. 

Nothing happened. 

He examined the blade, holding his fingers slightly above it. Magic seeped out of him again and hovered around the weapon. He lowered his and. "It's all right." 

Himiko nodded and selected two throwing daggers, complete with sheaths and a belt. She favored light and easy-to-reach weapons, easier to use in a fight. Shido preferred not to use weapons at all. Ban kept the dagger he picked, just in case. 

They turned to find that the remaining archway had disappeared. Ban cursed. "Not again…" 

"Over there." They turned to where Shido was pointing, a black, forbidding space on the opposite wall, steadily growing larger until it could accommodate all three of them. 

They looked at each other. "No choice," Shido remarked. 

Himiko lifted her chin, nodded, and strode forward. The men had to quicken their pace to catch up. 

As son as they entered the doorway, light flared, illuminating stone walls with faint paintings on them…pictures of life, death…bloody wars and human sacrifices, portraits of humans and demons alike. Himiko shuddered and looked away. 

"Crap," Ban said, staring straight ahead. 

At least five hallways branched left, right, and forward, and beyond that, they could glimpse more hallways, and more… 

They were in a maze. 

Then, the judge's voice came again. 

**

…---…

**

_4:00 AM_

Already, more than an hour had passed since Ban, Himiko, and Shido disappeared into the portal...roughly a little less time, then, since Ginji, Paul, and Natsumi went to get supplies. 

Everyone jerked in surprise when they heard inhuman cackles and sounds of attack from behind the barrier. They turned, and saw Ginji, Paul, and Natsumi about to be overrun by ghosts. 

"Oh, no!" HEVN gasped. 

"Ginji-san!" Kazuki and the others tried to push through the barrier, but to no avail. 

A bright flare of electricity, clearing at least ten feet in front of the oppressed trio…and, to the shock of the others, gunshots. Paul had armed himself and Natsumi with a deadly revolver each. 

"Where'd he get those?" Emishi cried. 

HEVN was pressing herself against the shield, trying to see through the mass of creatures outside. "He has a stock in his basement," HEVN said worriedly. She peered forward. "I'm betting those backpacks he, Ginji and Natsumi are carrying are full of bullet magazines. And first aid…" 

"HEVN-san, watch out!" Kazuki pulled her away. 

Aesclepius shot through his barrier, leaving the others inside… 

And suddenly all of him, his whole, infinite length could be seen, coils and coils, and a massive, powerful tail, and he fought, reared, and struck and bit and lashed, regardless of the multitudes hacking and tearing at him as he tried to get to Paul, Ginji, and Natsumi. The others were amazed…and frightened, to see that some could actually hurt him, as little scratches began to appear all over Aesclepius' smooth scales. 

Emishi banged on the barrier with his whip, ignoring the shuddering it caused. "Damn snake, let us out so we can help!" 

An imp leapt through the barrier, leering wickedly as saliva dropped from its wide mouth… 

It didn't stand a chance against Emishi's attack, and the body dissolved quickly, after it died… 

"Looks like we'll be busy here, too," Kazuki said grimly, readying his bells as a few more creatures penetrated the weakened barrier. Juubei took up a stance beside him. "Hold them off long enough until Aesclepius gets back here. HEVN-san, stay back." 

HEVN nodded absently...she had an idea. Approaching the barrier, she put a hand on it and closed her eyes. 

The others were startled as flickers emitted from it and it noticeably thickened. 

"HEVN-san!" 

"I wasn't sure if it could absorb from non-magical people," she remarked, hand still on the barrier. 

"Don't let it get too much of your strength," Kazuki told her. His eyes gleamed. "We're prepared to fight." 

**…---…**

_4:10 AM_

Ban's right arm jerked, and he let out a slight exclamation of surprise, stopping in his tracks. The other two looked at him, startled. "Ban?" 

"Aesclepius' fighting," he said shortly, straining to catch more of what was happening. 

"What do you mean?" Himiko asked quickly, facing him fully now. 

Ban shook his head, as if trying to clear it. "He's fighting…I can't tell what. He's not that bad off, but for a moment, he was." He stopped as his mind made another connection, and his eyes flashed. "Ginji!" 

"What happened?" Shido stepped forward. 

Ban's forehead creased, and puzzled anger came into his face. "The idiot, he's out of the barrier!" 

"What?!" 

"Himiko, look out!" 

Shido tried to move, with his warning, but before he could do so two metal blades flashed and cut. The demon fell back, and the three dived out of the way as it expelled a gout of fire…no effect of Himiko's perfumes. It lashed out with one claw, blindly…there was a rip of cloth and a female gasp. Ban's head jerked around and he swung at the demon…to have his fist meet empty air. 

Himiko stood over the dead, face down body of the demon, blood from its neck and chest dripping off her knives. She knelt and wiped them on the body, breathing heavily. There was a rip on the side of her shirt. She stood, ignoring the morbid images mirrored in the spreading pool of blood. 

"You were faster with your knives at thirteen," Ban told her irritably. 

Shido gaped at his arrogance and began to snap at him, but Himiko just gave nodded in agreement, sheathing the blades. "I was." She winced and put a hand to her side. 

Ban and Shido stepped forward, tensing. "Is it bleeding?" 

"No." She removed her hand, revealing the raised line of skin across her side…a scratch, not one that bled, but still painful, like a slight burn. 

"That's too close." 

"So blame me," she snapped. Then, she sighed. "Gomen. I'm getting a little edgy…" 

Ban nodded. "The sooner we complete this damn maze, the better." 

Already around an hour had passed…upon their entry into the maze, the judge had told them to follow Ban. Apparently he had told the man something additional, because the man had just grunted and nodded. For the first half hour into the maze, nothing had happened. Then, demons began appearing again, at random intervals, intent on stopping them or wounding Himiko…who thankfully hadn't suffered any. This had convinced them they were on the right track. 

They set to walking again. "Where does this lead to, anyway?" 

"Down," Shido answered. 

"What?!" Ban asked. 

Himiko glared at him. "You mean you've been leading us the whole time and you don't know where we're going?" 

"I do know we're doing it right…there's a trail of magic, and that's what I was told to follow," Ban snapped. "I didn't know it was going downwards. How sure are you, monkey trainer?" 

"It's…well...Can't explain. Like a mole's sense." Shido looked at him. "You've been leading us deeper underground, and you're going the right way. I can almost sense the magic you're following…" 

"If you're following something to get us out of here," Himiko interrupted. "This isn't very challenging." 

Ban's face drew itself into a scowl. "The judge mentioned you'd be meeting a harder one later, if you pass," he told her shortly. 

"Why don't you want to go deeper?" Shido asked. 

Ban's expression grew even darker, if possible. "The Mayans had a belief," he said slowly. "That each doorway in their temples or pyramids was a doorway to the underworld. If that's where this maze leads to, I don't want to know what will meet us in the end." Something alerted him, and he ceased walking as they turned to the right. "Stop." 

The other two obeyed, and they drew closer together. Ban lifted his palm, and a small ball of light appeared, gleaming off three red pairs of eyes before them. 

**…---…**

The battle was short and quick, and they continued on through the maze. More demons began to appear to challenge them; it was getting harder to keep Himiko from getting any wounds. Ban spat on the ground after around the tenth set to have attacked them…they had had to stop to temporarily bind a nasty gouge on his shoulder, from blocking a blow meant for Himiko. Shido had a similar wound as well, around the area of his ribcage, also from shielding her…Himiko was beginning to get angry at herself for needing protection. Ban told her to shut up and quit being stupid. She herself was not unscathed…several bruises covered her arms, and there was another scratch on her leg, thankfully not bleeding. Once his wound had been staunched and bound, Ban urged them to move on. 

Some nagging sense told him time was going fast, and he didn't want to find out what would happen if it ran out. 

**…---…**

Natsumi bit down a cry of pain as claws made a gash in her thigh, ripping the cloth of her jeans. She shot the misshapen creature attacking her through the head. Ginji was at her side, brown eyes worried. "Natsumi-chan, are you all right?" 

"Gin-chan, look out!" She shoved him out of the way and fired her gun again, hitting a zombie square in the eye. The creature moaned as the bullet punctured its unliving brain, and stumbled backwards. 

Ginji gulped. Who would've thought she was so good with a gun? 

Paul was an excellent shot, too. He covered the backs of the two younger ones, taking out one monster per shot. "We need to move forward." the man said through gritted teeth. 

Ginji nodded, took a deep breath, and expelled a huge blaze of electricity. Ghosts and monsters flew several feet in the air…for a moment, there was a clear space between them and the magical barrier in front of the others. They ran. 

A zombie leapt in front of them, blocking their way. Paul and Natsumi shot, then Natsumi's hand flew up to her mouth. 

Out of nowhere, a scaly tail appeared, sweeping the creature and some of its companions away. The bullets embedded themselves into it. There was a hiss of pain, and a familiar snake's head appeared. 

"Aesclepius!" Ginji cried, as Natsumi called a frantic apology. 

"Onto my back, now!" the spirit hissed. 

There was no time for questions. Quickly, Ginji managed to leap up onto the snake's body, suddenly as thick as he was tall. He grabbed Natsumi's arm and hauled her up, and she nearly slipped off, catching onto his vest for a hold. Straddling Aesclepius and digging his feet into the snake's sides, he gripped her tight around the waist to keep her from falling, and reached down for Paul, and soon the three were balancing precariously on the snake's back. 

"Hold on tight!" Small arrows of magic shot out of the snake's scales, threading themselves around their feet and legs, anchoring them solidly. Natsumi and Paul shot off a few more creatures clambering up Aesclepius' sides, and Ginji electrocuted a few hovering ghosts. 

"What…" Ginji began. 

Without warning, Aesclepius dove. 

Down through the nonexistent floor, passing through a separate space…it was like falling in a deep, dark nothingness…No sound, no light, all cold as they felt the presence and pull of stars coming nearer and then farther. And suddenly they angled up, and burst through in a shower of heated sparks amid cries of surprise from the others, and they were safe within the barrier again. Paul sat in relief, nearly sliding off the snake's back as the magic anchoring them dissipated, and Ginji could feel Natsumi trembling, his arm still wrapped around her. Nevertheless, there was a small, victorious grin on the girl's face. 

"Are you all right?" HEVN called. 

Outside, the ghosts banged against the barrier angrily, cheated of their prey. 

**…---…**

_5:15 AM_

Himiko cursed, annoyed. She had gotten separated from Ban and Shido, somehow…it had taken one battle and a demon to do it, but now she was on her own, not sure if she was lost or following some trail. She knew something was compelling her to move forward, and since she hadn't been stopped yet (and Ban hadn't come bursting out of nowhere to drag her in the right direction) she supposed she was miraculously on the right track, in spite of not using magic. 

It was getting dark, too dark to see properly, the magic light that had previously illuminated the maze was dimming, so she no longer knew where she was going. But walls still surrounded her, and in the dimming light the paintings seemed to have changed, somehow… 

Wind ruffled her hair; pausing, she warily unsheathed one knife and brought out a vial. 

"Hello, Himiko." 

The walls seemed to fall away…she sensed space, all around her, wide space. She was in the maze still, in a weird sort of way, and yet…Standing her ground, she turned her head in the direction of the voice, senses quivering. 

A figure appeared, a very familiar one…at first she thought there was a mirror there, but then her reflection was moving on its own. 

"Is this going to be like Ginji's?" Himiko asked, raising an eyebrow. 

Her reflection gave a feral grin, then lunged forward. 

Himiko ducked and lashed out, and her echo blocked the knife with its own, swinging forward with its vial. Wrong move, Himiko thought, inhaling the scent and blowing out flames. The echo cursed, spun away, and stood at ready, a mad red glint in its eyes. 

Himiko drew her other knife, and another vial, and stayed in a half-crouching position. 

The other Himiko spoke, and her voice was raspy, evil, inhuman. "The first one to draw blood," it said, lifting another vial…the Acceleration potion…to its lips. "Wins." 

**…---…**

"Damn it, where is she?!" Ban yelled. 

"Shut up, Midou!" Shido snapped. "Calm down and try to help me sense her!" 

"I can't get a trace of her anywhere! Why do you think I'm like this?" 

Shido lifted a hand and frowned. "I smell something." 

Ban stopped, closed his eyes, and took a deep breath. A few seconds, then his eyes snapped wide open, an anxious, wild blue. "It's Acceleration…" 

"What?" 

Ban made a motion as if he were ripping apart the wall…the stones tore apart like fabric, and he was grabbing Shido by the collar and dragging him into the space beyond… 

**...---…**

_5:30 AM_

Himiko knelt on the ground, panting as she felt her insides twist, churn, then settle again, slowly. With both of them on Acceleration, she and her reflection had been equals. None of them had wounds, although her echo had considerably more cuts on its clothes. 

She wondered who would recover from the Acceleration first. 

Eight feet away, it grinned, rose to its feet, and raised the vial once more to its lips. 

"You do know what may happen if you do that," Himiko gasped out, getting unsteadily onto her feet. 

"You do know that I'm not human," it replied smoothly. "Just a demon mirroring you." 

It shrieked as a knife flew and hit the bottle, knocking it out of its grasp and onto the rocky, uneven floor. 

Himiko ran and leaped forward, and her Unconsciousness perfume floated around her. Caught unprepared, the demon inhaled, and sank to its knees, fighting off the effects. 

Himiko stood over it, remaining knife at ready… 

But she couldn't bring herself to stab it in the back while it was helpless. 

Even if it was a demon. 

She hesitated a second too long. It whirled and knocked the knife out of her hand, then lunged for her with its own… 

She did a somersault backwards, but was betrayed by the floor. She gasped as her leg jolted and buckled under her, her ankle ether sprained or twisted, and she fell and couldn't get up. 

The demon sheathed its knife, and brought out the Flame poison. As it brought it to its lips, it gloated, "I'm going to watch you burn…slowly." Himiko saw her own face twist with sadistic glee, and shuddered. She brought out the Acceleration perfume… 

It inhaled the Flame… 

And a hand shot out from behind and grabbed its neck, lifting it off the ground. 

The demon choked on the Flame perfume…the fumes rushed into it, and it screamed, and burst into flames. 

Ban dropped the burning body quickly and strode over to Himiko. "You should be more careful! What happened?" 

She sighed. "I don't know. I can't stand…" 

Ban's expression softened slightly, and he knelt and motioned her to show him her foot. She uncurled her leg from under her, thankful that for all the pain, it wasn't bleeding. With gentle hands, he examined her foot as she told him what had happened to it. He stood, and helped her up. "It's sprained," he said, slinging her arm around his shoulders. Shido appeared on her other side and did the same, asking if she was okay. She nodded. 

"We'll fix it later," Ban said, as they helped her hobble at a moderate pace across the floor. "Did you find the way out?" he asked Shido. 

The Beastmaster nodded. "It's just there…" Indeed, ten feet away was a rectangular doorway of light. 

"I guess the mirror demon was the last one." 

They made their way to the door in silence…Silence that raised the hair on the back of Himiko's neck. 

"Guys, stop." 

"Why?" But they slowed. 

Slowly, trying to maintain her balance, she took her arms from around their shoulders and drew out two Flame poisons, one in each hand. Uncorking them, she quickly pressed her thumbs over the openings, keeping the fumes in. Ban raised his eyebrows at her. 

"When I throw these, run…" 

"You can't run," Ban pointed out flatly. 

"I'll manage," she snapped. "Just do it. All right?" Before they could argue, she threw the bottles to either side. "_Run!_" 

As flames sprung up around them, they ran. 

The shrieks of demons burning assaulted their ears… Ban and Shido gaped when they saw the masses of burning bodies on either side of them, and wondered how they'd missed the potential ambush. Several leapt to block the trio, knocking down Himiko in the process…Shoving them aside, the men yanked the girl up and ran harder. 

The path to the doorway was empty before them… 

There was a final explosion and a singeing blast of heat and they were through, falling, falling, falling… 

Blackness arrested them. 

"Just a moment," the judge's voice came pleasantly. "I need to examine Miss Himiko." 

"She's not bleeding," Ban said roughly. 

"I'll be the judge of that." Before either Ban or Shido could move, a gray-white mist surrounded Himiko, swirling about in concentric circles. 

"Hmm…bruised, scratched, scraped…sprained ankle, scorched… These are very close calls." 

"But no blood," Ban said. 

"True, true…" 

"Listen, whoever you are, are you an impartial judge or not?!" 

"Whoever I am? You mean you can't see me?" Something like thoughtful deliberation came into the judge's voice. "Now, that's interesting…" As Ban let out a growl of frustration and Shido's eyes began to burn, the judge sighed and said, "All right, all right." The mist disappeared, and Ban had to catch Himiko as she staggered into him, biting her lip against the pain in her ankle. "She passed…but just barely." 

Without warning, their fall continued, and they yelled as they burst through a portal and into a Birthplace, to be greeted with cries of blatant relief and a glomping tare-Ginji. 

_To be continued..._

**A/N:** Sorry for the hiatus...-winces- Just finished exams, thank God. 

This has got to be the longest chapter of _anything_ I've ever written in my entire life. 

**Peter the Muggle**: I got creeped out writing the part with Raitei in it...hehe. Well, I _wish_ the anime would be continued... 

**limelie, Atropos' Knife, KitKaos, Misao Seta, sq1993, obssdGB, **: Thanks for reviewing, and hope you liked this chapter! 

**undeniablyevil**: Yesh, yesh, I'm continuing! Don't kill me! Oh, there are hints? -innocent whistling- Who knew? 

**Paris Lee:** Hey! You're back! :D Haha, nakikilig ka? Thanks for the review, and hope you enjoyed this chapter, too! 

The legend of 3 AM being Demon's Hour...or Devil's Hour...is something I heard from a friend. It involves a rotunda, a black car, and...um, never mind. -sweatdrops- Hehe. 

Hopefully, the next chapter will be up in 2-3 weeks... -grins- 


	4. 6:00: Historie

_Sorry for the delay, I was supposed to put this up four or five days ago...but I got sore eyes and was banned from touching stuff that the rest of the family touches, computer included. Anyways..._

**Disclaimer:** I.do.not.own.the.Get.Backers. :D Oh, and all the stuff 'bout the curse here are fabricated, okay? Just ta let ya know...

** Chapter Three: 6:00 AM, Historie **

Silence reigned in the pocket of reality the two sorceresses resided in. Shinya spoke softly, not looking at her sister. "She's done pretty well, hasn't she?" 

The other woman nodded. "Frankly, I didn't really expect her to come this far." She tipped her face upwards and pursed her lips thoughtfully. "Still…it could be to our advantage." 

Shinya snorted. "How?" 

"It proves she's strong," Amaya's eyes gleamed strangely, and a forbidding smile touched her lips. "The trials are not only to try to capture her…when she turns to our side, she will retain her strength of will, her intelligence and capabilities. Only…it will be for our cause." 

"You speak as if it were a certainty," Shinya said, the tone of her voice seeming serve as a warning, a caution against overconfidence. 

Amaya closed her eyes and emitted a soft laugh. "Sister…what else could it be?" 

**…---…**

"Ban-chan, Ban-chan, Ban-chan!" 

Ban promptly delivered a hard _thwap_ on Tare-Ginji's head. "Baka ahou! Why were you outside the barrier?" 

Ginji rubbed the tender spot. "Eh…Gomen! I was helping Natsumi-chan and Master!" Ginji noticed the bandage on Ban's shoulder. "Ban-chan, not your shoulder again!" 

"I know, I know. Too many damn wounds around that area already." Ban jerked a thumb at Shido and Himiko. "They're injured, too. Help them first." He noticed the rip in Natsumi's jeans, and the gauze bandage around her thigh. "What happened to Natsumi?" 

"She got scratched by some…some creature," Ginji explained, as the girl gave out bandages and medicines to the ones tending Shido and Himiko. "Aesclepius made sure it wasn't infected." 

"And why does Aesclepius have bullet wounds?" Juubei had pulled out the bullets earlier, and the wounds were clotting, but the marks stood out on Aesclepius' scales, dark, rusty red-brown on gold. 

"Eh…Master and Natsumi shot at something and hit him by accident." 

Before Ban could react, the young waitress came over, and she and Ginji convinced him to sit down so they could tend his wounds. As they did so, Ban turned a blue glare on Aesclepius. "Tell me what happened here." 

**

…---…

**

They had less than thirty minutes to rest, tend to their wounds, and decide who would go next with Himiko. The girl was adamant about one thing…it would be none of the people who'd gone with her before. She wanted them to rest. 

Ban was not happy about this, but she ignored him when he said so. 

Right now, HEVN and Natsumi were tending Ban and Shido's wounds, while Juubei treated Himiko's ankle, trying to lessen the pain and speed the healing with his needles. Paul, Kazuki, and Emishi were standing guard (though the Birthplace was currently empty of spirits.) while Ginji stayed with the injured ones. Aesclepius still encircled them, having lowered the magic shield to conserve power. 

HEVN sighed as she finished bandaging Shido's ribcage. "Madoka-chan will not be happy about that," she informed him. He snorted, and she raised and eyebrow. "Are you planning to tell her, at all?" 

"I'm worried what she's thinking now," he admitted softly. "She knew I was going to help, but she didn't know how long it would take." 

"Sweet of you, monkey man," Ban remarked from where he was sitting. 

Shido growled. "Shut up, snake bastard." 

Aesclepius gave a low hiss of amusement. Funny to call the man snake bastard in front of the snake. 

"Ban-chan, have you found out more on Himiko-chan's curse?" Ginji asked, to change the conversation. 

Ban shook his head slightly. "The damn witches aren't giving out any bit of information." He winced as Natsumi completed tending a large cut on his arm. "The trials don't even have significant meaning." 

"Do they have to?" Natsumi asked curiously. 

"Usually, trials for a magical inheritance are symbolic. Almost like rituals," Ban said, as she cleared up her first-aid materials. "They need to bear some significance to the inheritance, otherwise why set up a trial that's not going to affect it?" 

Ginji folded his arms behind his head. "So far, all that seems to have been tested is Himiko-chan's willpower and endurance," he observed. 

Ban looked at him in some surprise, then nodded. "Aa. I never really saw that…" 

There was silence, for a while. Kazuki was talking to Emishi quietly, and Natsumi and HEVN were returning the things to the backpacks. Himiko nodded in thanks at Juubei as the doctor finished treating her ankle…Ban raised an eyebrow at her when she turned to him. "You okay?" 

"Hai," she nodded. She cocked her head. "Ban, what do you know about my curse?" 

Almost everyone turned to listen at this, but the man remained silent. They didn't think he was going to answer. 

"Ban," Himiko said at last, when he didn't speak. "I think you should tell me. I might get the curse today…" 

Ban's reaction to this was unexpectedly vehement. "That shouldn't even be on your list of options, Himiko!" he snapped scathingly. The others stared at him, startled, and Ginji tried to pacify him. 

But Himiko didn't back down. "It's not," she said firmly. "But I want to know what I'm up against." 

Ban shook his head sharply, once…in annoyance, not in disagreement. "Yamato didn't want me to tell you," he murmured. "He knew I knew about the Voodoo Child curse, even before I met you. I just didn't know who had it." His eyes were tired, remembering many things…too many, yet too few. "I agreed you shouldn't know, not when you were only what, thirteen…" 

"But she's older now, Ban-chan. And it's today," Ginji said softly. 

"Aa." Ban blew out a breath. "I know." He turned his head to Aesclepius. "If I miss out on anything, tell me." The snake bobbed his head once, and Ban began. 

"What I know about the curse, you know most of already. The curse…or something closely related to it, would come on your seventeenth birthday, though this is only in your case. Happy birthday, by the way." Himiko snorted at the irony. Ban grimaced, then continued. "Your curse directly concerns the witches…meaning they will use you after the curse, or at least keep in contact with you. Most curses are made for a one-shot thing, one blow. Not this one. This curse will also destroy you." His gaze was hard. "I don't know if you will die, technically. Probably not. But you will cease to exist, as yourself, whatever else the curse does to you. 

"I read about most of the ritual in my grandmother's library; she told me the rest…afterwards." Ginji noticed that Ban did not mention that 'afterwards' meant just three days ago. "She was the Witch Queen, and she had a record of every major curse performed. The ritual…it involves blood, for binding. A lot or a little, the amount doesn't matter. It's performed twice on every cursed person of a generation, in preparation for the last one." He nodded grimly at Himiko's questioning, startled look. "You and Yamato are the only two of the last generation. It is you who will bear the full weight of the curse, started…roughly six hundred years ago. 

"The previous bearers of the curse only gave a little blood, and once the second ritual was completed, they only suffered fits of apparent insanity, from time to time. The first ritual is done in infancy, the second preferably during the teenage years. The generation that would be truly cursed was to be the six hundred and sixty-sixth generation from Amaya and Shinya…thus, it was you and Yamato. 

"At this point, the obaasan came in while I was reading and gave me hell." Ban smirked. "I was supposed to be researching in her library, not looking through her private files." 

"You said Amaya and Shinya were your grandmother's students, Ban-chan," Ginji remarked. "But…if they were born more than six hundred years ago…" 

"Ban's grandmother," Aesclepius said softly. "Was not…is not of the time she chose to live in. She is ancient, centuries older than Amaya and Shinya themselves. But she only fell in love once, with an ordinary man who was far in the future. He discovered she was a witch, but not that she was the Witch Queen. She aged slowly, and could choose what she looked like after all. She had only one child, a girl, and that girl had one son, Ban. It was Ban and not his mother who inherited the Witch Queen's powers." 

"They didn't need to hear my grandparents' love story," Ban told the snake, without rancor. "He ran into Amaya a long time ago." Ban jerked his head at the snake, and a grin plastered itself on Ban's face. "He didn't like her at all." 

"If Amaya and Shinya were born six hundred years ago…why are they alive and testing me now?" Himiko asked suddenly. 

Ban shrugged. "I don't think they ever really died," he told her. "A powerful enough witch or wizard could accomplish that…send themselves into a stasis so deep and complete it would preserve their selves until the designated time of awakening. They left the obaasan soon after they made the curse, that much I know…caused a ruckus in the magic community. No one knows if they left her or she kicked them out." He gave a mirthless grin at Ginji and Himiko's questioning looks. "No, she didn't tell me, either." 

He became serious. "Himiko, when I killed Yamato…" Strange, how it could come out so casually now. "…it wasn't only because he was being hit by the curse. The curse was trying to get him to perform your first ritual on you, because you are his female counterpart, and the ritual was not completed in your infancy. Yamato stopped your first ritual, that night, even if he wasn't able to stop his second one. His was performed just before yours. He did something that spoiled everything, and the witches performing the rituals got really, really mad at him. Whatever he did, the villagers noticed. When they arrived, the witches had vanished, and for lack of someone to blame, they jailed you and Yamato, for being witch children. You know the rest," he finished quietly. 

"How do you know all this?" Himiko asked, amazed. 

Ban's expression was unreadable. "He told me." 

"Ban, tell her about the visitors," Aesclepius instructed. 

The man looked blankly at the snake. "The what?" 

"Don't you remember? The crazy people who came knocking on the door…" 

"Which ones…oh, those." Ban grimaced. "Apparently, the Voodoo Children had cults that worshipped them, in different parts of the world. Even as far as Germany…they came knocking on our door once, moaning and in the middle of trances, asking the obaasan where the Voodoo Children were. She broke that trance, and sent them all home." 

Himiko gulped. "Cults that _worship…?!_" 

"Something's coming," Kazuki said, standing quickly. 

Ban looked up immediately, tensing. "What? I didn't sense anything…" Ginji scrambled to support him as he stood, and Ban shook his head, indicating that his injuries didn't require that…yet. 

Himiko got up unsteadily, too, and Shido stood warily, like a cornered animal. The others readied themselves, settling into old, familiar battle stances. "You set out some strings, Kazu-chan?" Ginji asked. 

Kazuki nodded, went still, then pointed somewhere to his right. "It's coming from there." He turned back to the others. "The strings don't really pick up sounds…more like vibrations. I think it's magic." 

"The portal's coming," Ban muttered. He shoved his glasses up. "Aesclepius, what time is it?" 

"Two minutes left," the snake spirit replied. He flexed his body, and the scales rippled in a powerful, threatening wave. 

Ban nodded and put out a hand, touching Aesclepius' side and taking a deep breath. A magic barrier once again flickered between Aesclepius and the Birthplace, shimmering different colors from the combined magic of Ban and the snake. 

"Be on guard against anything," Ban warned. Ginji began to crackles softly. 

The snake began to count down. "Five. Four. Three. Two. One…" 

Silence. To their surprise, the portal didn't open with a howl, a blast, or a demon popping out of it…it just shimmered there, in complete silence. In the white-grey, surreal light, they saw the ghosts gather silently outside the shield, watching and waiting. The others faced them, ready to fight, and Himiko looked at Ban, unsure if she should go. 

Then, Amaya stepped out of the portal. Instinctively, Ban and Himiko drew back. The sorceress stretched out a hand. "Himiko-chan," she said softly. "Come with me." 

"No," Himiko snapped, and there was a small bottle of Flame perfume between her fingers. HEVN turned from facing outwards and leveled her gun (also from Paul) at the witch. Emishi turned, too, as did Ban and Ginji. Amaya just smiled at them all. 

"What's it this time?" Himiko asked, with the barest hint of respect in her voice. 

The sorceress smiled. "Your trial's simple, Himiko-chan," Amaya said to her. "And it will be…a great learning experience. You'll see when you get there. I'll even let you bring someone along. Now, choose your companion, and we'll go." 

"No, not you, Ban, Ginji," Himiko whispered as they stepped forward. She threw an icy glare at Amaya. "I don't want you to tire yourselves out." 

"Himiko…" Ban growled. 

She ignored him and her eyes landed on the Joker. "Emishi," she said suddenly. "Come with me." 

"Eh? Nani, Himikoooo …!" 

She didn't heed his questions and dragged him into the portal, not waiting for Amaya. 

Amaya sighed and stepped back inside, still smiling that eerie, vixen-like smile. "I'm telling the truth, it is simple. A standard one, in fact. You should know this, Ban." The grin became wider. "Let's see if she can stand all the history of our curse…part of which you so willingly," She said scathingly to Ban. "…decided to tell her." 

Before Ban could reply, Amaya turned and slipped through the portal. 

Ban turned to Shido, drawing the man's attention away from the spirits outside. "Monkey man. Emishi's a good enough fighter, right? He'll be able to defend himself and Himiko, if he meets stuff like we did?" 

Shido was surprised that he was asking his opinion…but he hid that and thought it over, carefully. "He can be," the Beastmaster said slowly. He scowled. "In this case, he has to be." 

**…---…**

"Welcome to the Archives." 

Himiko and Emishi stared around in amazement. They were in a place much like the Birthplace…a universe of stars, suns, light and dark…except it was a limited space. They could not see boundaries, but they knew the place was finite. Within it were many, many overlapping objects. 

Everything around them was practically see-through. Overall, though, it looked like some old-fashioned library. Transparent floorboards, made of dark, seemingly old wood, were under them, stars winking merrily through. Bookshelves surrounded the three, the highest shelf a good three feet above Himiko's head, and the shelves seemed to be overlapping, occupying the same space. Strange, almost transparent sculptures that seemed to have lives of their own stood scattered in random places, and the rest of the spaces were filled with see-through clusters of luminescent white globes, floating an inch off their pedestals. 

"The Archives of the Witches," Amaya said, a hint of genuine pride in her voice. "Magic black and white, powerful and mundane. Those technology-generated Archives in your Babylon City, Joker, can never compare to this. Millennia of knowledge reside here, safeguarded by its Keeper." She smirked at their bewilderment. "It's earthly form is more solid, though no less intimidating. Where would you like to have your trial, Himiko-chan?" 

"You're actually giving me a choice?" The girl raised her eyebrow. 

Amaya nodded. "Yes. Only this once." 

Himiko shrugged. "It doesn't really matter to me." Amaya gave a triumphant little smile and opened her mouth to speak, but the girl had turned to Emishi. "Emishi?" 

"Eh…whatever you choose, Himiko-san," Emishi said, a little nervously. He rubbed the back of his head uncomfortably. "This place…creeps me out, though. The solid place would make me feel better. But it's really all up to you," he added quickly. 

Himiko nodded. "All right." She turned to Amaya. "I'll have it in the earthly version, then." 

The girl did not miss the flicker of displeasure in the sorceress's expression, and inwardly she sighed in relief, sensing that she had somehow made maters less complicated for herself. "Very well, then," Amaya said. She waved sharply, and the place whirled around them, taking her with it. Emishi stiffened, hand on whip, and Himiko stepped back, readying her vials. But Amaya's next words before the place solidified were merely, "Make sure you're back on time." 

"What? Wait…" But Amaya was gone. 

As usual. 

Himiko sighed in exasperation. Emishi stared. "Himiko-san? How are we supposed to get back?" 

"I don't know," the girl replied wearily. The man noticed the shadows under her eyes, though she didn't seem to be showing much sign of fatigue. He realized, then, that she hadn't slept at all. 

Himiko was gazing around the room. "Emishi, please look for a way out, or a book on how to get to the Birthplace…or the other form of the Archives, non-magically. I know you're supposed to guard me," she said, cutting off his protests. "But I'm pretty sure all I'm supposed to do is learn about my curse. I'll tell you when I find something, and you look for me if you find something. The Archives can't be _that_ big, can it?" 

Finally Emishi consented to separate from her only when he made her apply more tracking perfume (his nose wasn't as finely trained as hers or Ban's) and he put some on himself. Emishi didn't want to lose Himiko…and he didn't want to get lost, either. 

As the Joker slipped off through the shelves, Himiko stayed where she was to get her bearings. The room was definitely smaller than its other form, and nothing overlapped here, but here there was a silent, oppressive air, solemn and still. The shelves had labels on them… _Spells, Potions, Wellsprings of Magic,_ and so on and so forth. The pedestals on which the luminous globes stood had labels, too. 

As Himiko stood trying to decide whether she should look for a section on curses or on her curse specifically, she heard her name. "Himiko-san! Himiko-san!" 

It was Emishi, and oddly, it sounded like he was trying not to laugh. 

"Himiko-san, come here and tell me if this is what I think it is." 

_What now?_ Curious, Himiko set off in the direction the Joker had gone, following the scent of the perfume on him. 

She found him in front of a wall that had four pictures on it, and below the pictures were two clear glass balls, again suspended on pedestals. 

One look at the topmost picture and she could see why he was laughing. 

"That IS Midou-han, isn't it, Himiko-san?" 

Himiko grinned. The round-faced, beaming child, about two or three years old, was definitely Ban…the messy brown hair and bright blue eyes were unmistakable, and his face bore resemblance to how he looked now. 

"He was such a cute baby," Emishi said, in a wicked tone that promised blackmail. "But a sulky kid," the Joker remarked, pointing to the other frames. Indeed, the baby picture seemed the only time he'd ever smiled…five-year-old Ban was serious, and the nine-year-old and thirteen-year-old were sullen. But what was in the globes…? 

Himiko was startled when she looked in one, and saw a…it was not so much a picture as a moment captured in time: She, Yamato, and Ban, playing cards around the table. She was laughing, Yamato was grinning, and Ban had a small smirk on his face, and she remembered that was the time when she and Ban had pulled one over Yamato, causing him lose the game in the most undignified manner possible. 

"Hey, it's Ginji-han!" 

The other globe had another moment, of Ban and Ginji roughhousing. Both were grinning madly, and laughing at each other. Himiko's smile softened when she saw this picture…she'd never seen Ban this happy before, and according to his old friends, Ginji hadn't been that cheery either, until he met Ban. 

A sudden thought struck her, and her smile disappeared, forehead wrinkling in bewilderment. _Why are there pictures of Ban in this place?_

"Himiko." 

The voice wasn't menacing, but something in it made the hairs on the back of Himiko's neck stand. Emishi felt much the same…he spun, whip snapping out, not to hurt, but to hinder… 

And it was stopped by a veritable wall of power, flinging Emishi backwards by several feet. 

"Emishi!" Himiko grabbed him and hauled him up, angrily facing the old lady who had done the spell. 

She was dressed simply, a long woolen skirt, knit blouse, and shawl, like any ordinary old lady. But unlike most, her hair was down, in great, white waves, framing her wrinkled young-old face and winking soft and bright in the light of the globes. A thin band of gold was the only thing that held her hair back, like a headband. She had a regal, powerful air to her, and a faint aura shimmered around her. Himiko gulped when she saw her face….it was not cruel, yet neither was it kind. There was an aged, cold wisdom to it, a wisdom that could be harsh at times, a neutrality that was frightening in its blankness. 

Obviously, she was someone of great importance, and magic. 

And she had familiar, all-too-blue eyes, just like the Master of the Jagan's. 

_ "I read about most of the ritual in my grandmother's library…" _

"Ban's grandmother is not of the time she chose to live in…" 

It clicked in Himiko's mind. 

"You're..." she breathed, suddenly afraid. 

The lady inclined her head, and her hair rippled softly. "The Witch Queen, Keeper of the Archives, Lady over Black and White…and grandmother to that arrogant young man you call Midou Ban," she finished dryly. Her piercing gaze bore into the girl. "I know you, Himiko, from your escapades with him. And you too, Joker." 

"You've been watching him, ever since he left you?" Himiko asked weakly, still in shock. 

The lady snorted, sounding eerily like Ban. "The little runt is my grandson, after all." 

Yes, much like Ban, masking almost reluctant affection with roughness. 

The Witch Queen continued briskly, "Amaya didn't bother to instruct you, and as the judge may not enter my Archives, I shall brief you on you trial. Follow me." She turned and glided swiftly through the shelves. Himiko and Emishi scrambled to keep up. 

She moved with the same arrogant self-assurance Ban did, albeit more elegantly. Her quick movements made it hard for them to keep her in sight, but she slowed down when the finally caught up with her. She did not look at them, though. 

"Majo-sama…" Ban's grandmother seemed like the kind of person whom one would automatically call Lady Witch. "…shouldn't the sorceress be reported for not giving Himiko-san a fair chance?" Emishi panted. 

The Witch Queen let out an irritated breath. "Technically, what Amaya did was fair. This is a standard trial; most young witches, wizards, and the like would know the rules and what to do." She rounded a corner, and they reached a clear, carpeted space, surrounded by shelves and situated in front of a wall that had an empty arch in it. A rope stretched across the archway, keeping people out. Beyond the arch was a myriad of darting, filmy lights, illuminating a black-grey world of mist. "The fact that the trial has been edited, because Himiko is not witch-trained, makes no difference." 

"What am I supposed to do?" Himiko asked quietly, eyeing the arch and the weird space beyond. 

"Possibly, you will learn the entirety of your curse. Possibly." The Witch Queen removed the rope, and Himiko thought she saw it shimmer and flash as a spell took effect. Immediately, a blast of intense cold struck Himiko and Emishi, making them flinch and step back. The Witch Queen took no notice. "Standard trial is for the tested to learn all he or she was set to learn in the time he or she is given. All you need to do is stand on the threshold, actually. But sometimes you will be compelled to walk." Her eyes gleamed. "I suggest you don't go to far, because you need to be back here, in this library, by the end of your time." 

Himiko and Emishi gulped. 

"Your trial, Himiko, is to simply learn as much about the history and nature of your curse as you can in the three hours," the Witch Queen said. She took out a glittering object…an hourglass. She handed the charm to Emishi, and he looked at it curiously. "It's a good thing you have a companion," she told Himiko. "You can be her Timekeeper." This was directed at Emishi. "The hourglass is enchanted, so that it measures three hours, not the usual one. As the Timekeeper, it is your duty to ensure she comes back on time. When you return, I will be waiting here. I will take you back to the Archives' other form, then, and there the judge will pass your verdict." Her white hair flashed again as she inclined her head, and the shimmer around her became more pronounced. Himiko and Emishi bowed in respect, and she smiled, a little. "Do well, Himiko," she said softly. Then she was gone. 

_Do well._ More an order than a good-luck wish. 

Emishi looked questioningly at Himiko. She took a deep breath, steeled herself, and stepped into the cold wind onto the bare stone threshold. 

**…---…**

Aesclepius let out a soft, hissing chuckle, and Ban shot a questioning glare at him. "What?" Ginji looked over too, wondering what could make the snake laugh. On the other side of the circle, Paul shot at a strange animal that looked like a cross between a tiger and a wild boar. Natsumi and Juubei covered Kazuki as the thread-man wove a break in the barrier together with his strings. 

"You'll never guess where they are now," the snake told Ban, amused. 

"They're somewhere I know?" Ban raised his eyebrow. "The likelihood of that isn't much…" 

"They're someplace you and I know. That's the only reason I can sense them." He let out his strange laugh again. "To think we just mentioned it to Himiko-san a while ago…" 

"Where are they?' 

"If you can't guess, I'm not telling you." 

Ban glared. 

The snake stared back. 

Of course, it's really, really hard to out-stare a snake, even if you're considered one yourself. So when Ban blinked and Aesclepius let out a sort of snicker, it amused the others to no end. Small things tend to do that when you're so tense you could scream. 

Kazuki, Shido, Paul and HEVN had to hide their grins as Ban settled against the shield, grumbling about smart-ass snakes and their high and mighty airs. Natsumi stifled a giggle. Juubei, of course, was as deadpan as ever. 

"Aesclepius-san, stop being mean to Ban-chan," Ginji chided, though there was a grin on his face too. "Where are they?" 

"In the library." 

They looked at him, confused. "The what?" 

"A library? How did you expect me to guess…wait." Ban's eyes opened wide as the gears began clicking in his head, and ground to a halt at the correct answer. "Waitaminute…_**Her**_ library?" 

Aesclepius bobbed his head once, a passable version of a nod. "Yes, her library. Coincidental, isn't it?" 

"Hm." Ban shoved his glasses up his nose reflexively. "So it's a standard Search trial, then." 

"What, Ban-chan?" Ginji asked, still in a muddle. 

Ban spat onto the floor, and sighed. "A standard Search trial is taken by every magical child, for testing. At one point of life or another we all have tests…Himiko's came in the form of her curse, mine in the form of…well, my curse. Other people just need to be tested to check if they've got their magic right. The Search trial is always held in the Witch's Archives, a place half in one dimension and half in my grandmother's library. Standard procedure is the tested finds all the information she or he needs to know in the span of time given to them." He sighed again, and began to grumble. "Damn, I really need a smoke." 

"Go ahead, Ban-chan," Ginji said, surprised. "Why not?" 

Ban didn't answer, right away. Then, "Uh…Himiko has the lighter." 

"Oh," was all Ginji said. Ban sighed in relief, and remained relaxed even when he saw a flash of comprehension in his partner's eyes and a grin on the cheerful face. Ginji may be dense, but not in all things. 

Paul tossed him a lighter from where he stood. "You could have asked me," the café owner said irritably, as usual. "I smoke too, you know." 

Ban grinned as he caught the lighter. "Paul, oh Generous One, what would Ginji and I do without you?" 

"Shut up." 

**…---…**

_ The source of the magic was partly from nature, as all magical sources are, when you trace them back far enough. _

But this particular magic,the magic of the Voodoo Child Curse centers on lives, and people, and the power they possess. 

Six-hundred and sixty-six years ago, the Voodoo Child Curse was made by the Yueh sisters: Amaya and Shinya, pupils of the Witch Queen and descendants of a bloodline nearly as eligible as hers. The reasons for their making the curse are still unclear; some scholars say it was the desire for immortality, some say it was a plot to develop a weapon they could use to dominate worlds in the future, some say both. Other reasons could be out of simple curiosity, maybe arrogant ambition, or even as a project, for who knows what the Witch Queen assigns when she is teacher? 

"Somehow, I can't believe that last one," Himiko muttered to herself. 

She continued reading. 

**…---…**

Emishi looked up as she said something, noticed she was talking to herself, and sighed, looking at the hourglass in his hand. 

The grains had started falling the minute they had entered the testing ground. The place felt as strange and eerie as it looked. 

Ginji and Shido had warned them that the things they would meet were unlike any they'd ever seen before, each telling of his own experience in the past two testing grounds. Emishi had brushed the warnings off, thinking, like Shido had at first, that the places were no more frightening than MakubeX's virtual reality. Upon entering the Archives, and more so this place, he had seen how mistaken he was. 

Mist and fogginess seemed to be a favorite of the testers, because like the first trial, they were in it now. But this mist was different…it was not vast and unlimited, because the archway to the Archives was right behind them. It was not light…it was pitch-black, like nothingness and night. The mist that surrounded them was not just mist, either…Sketched in smoky writing and ghostly gray were runes, dozens and dozens of them, stretching and sprawled and etched in this black void. He couldn't even read them, and wondered how Himiko could. He knew she wasn't using magic, though…when Ban and the snake had used it back in the Birthplace, he'd felt the subtle prickling of power in the air, the supernatural nature that vibrated through every fiber in his being. Besides, Himiko herself had warned them all: if they saw an aura around her, that meant she was using magic, even if she didn't know it. At all costs, she did not want them to see that aura ever. 

No glow surrounded Himiko, and Emishi decided it may not take magic, hereditary or learned, to know otherworldly things, just an inheritance through blood. 

Thirty minutes had passed already, and they remained at the threshold. Emishi sighed in relief. 

**…---…**

Himiko sighed as her gaze traveled over the words. Nothing interesting, again, just repeating what she'd read for the past near-hour: Yueh Amaya and Yueh Shinya were the creators of the curse, students of the Witch Queen, and many more besides. So far all she'd seen were biographies on them, and frankly, she didn't care to know that. Even if they were her ancestors. Not much on the curse, only that it was their "greatest and most fearsome accomplishment." She still didn't know why. Likewise, she knew nothing of the ritual, the nature, the entirety of the curse. 

Which led to the conclusion that whatever its nature, the curse was an important one, to be hidden so well. 

How had Ban found it, then? And when he was no more than a child at that time… 

This place was really library-like…it would not give her the information right away, she had to research. The hard way. The Archives was a library, after all, not a computer with a search engine. 

Maybe if she looked at the section over there… 

**…---…**

Emishi gasped as Himiko began to move away, deeper into the void. "Himiko-san!" 

The girl did not hear him. 

Jumping up, he began to follow her, to bring her back…but he hesitated. 

Emishi may not be magical, but he noticed one thing: the runes would change in nature from time to time. As if they were from different periods of history, different styles of writing. Like skimming through textbooks, Himiko was transferring from one set of runes to another. If he brought her back to where he was standing, she might not be able to find the information she needed. 

He had a feeling she had to know everything, soon, in order to defeat the curse. 

He sighed. Being Timekeeper for her seemed to require a lot. They had roughly two hours left, and hopefully they wouldn't move so far that they would need a long time coming back. 

He set off after Himiko. 

**…---…**

Now _this_ was interesting. 

_ …It is known that the Witch Queen had no knowledge of the Yueh sisters' venture on creating the curse until its installation. Rumor has it that she was enraged when she found out, and even more so when she discovered the nature of the curse. The Witch Queen is an important keeper of magical balance between White and Black in several dimensions, and it was supposed that the curse would destroy the balance or upset it considerably. This may have been the reason the Yueh sisters eventually departed from the Witch Queen's tutelage, marked as failures because of their dismissal… _

So it hadn't been a project given by a crazy teacher, and Ban's grandmother hadn't liked it at all. Checking the date of this bit of information, she saw that it was several centuries newer than the section that had suggested the project theory. Must be the more reliable one, then. 

Then, she saw at the bottom: _For more information on the Voodoo Child Curse of the Yuehs, move to section 13.v664 of fourth volume…_

_Finally. _

**…---…**

She was moving too far, and only an hour and a half was left. She was still walking on, though it seemed faster now, eager. Maybe she had finally found something. 

He'd have to stop her in an hour, because they were going to need the remaining thirty minutes—maybe even more—if they wanted to get back to the Archives on time. 

Emishi glanced at the hourglass, then away. He'd have to pay extra attention to direction, whatever direction you could sense in a void. 

He ran to catch up with her, praying she'd find what she was looking for soon. 

**…---…**

She found them side by side, the section on the Rituals and the section on the Curse. Just as well, because some inner clock was telling her time was running out. 

This set of files was different from the others: not only words, but concepts, ideas put directly into her head. She stood still, a little dizzy as the images assaulted her. She forced herself to calm down, put her hands to her head, and tried to concentrate, to sort the information. 

Slowly, piece by piece, the scenes began coming together. 

**…---…**

Emishi stopped when Himiko did, and noted the look of relief on her face. Apparently, she'd found what she was looking for. Relief of his own entered him…he could see the archway they'd come through, still. Far away, a small space of light against the runes and blackness, but he could see it. 

When he looked at what she was looking at, though, he was rather startled. Instead of the runes, there were faint images, flashing once, twice, bright then dim then dark. He couldn't see them that well, but he had the idea Himiko could. They looked like strange rituals to him. Keeping a sharp eye on Himiko and another on their surroundings, he fiddled with his whip, transferring it from one hand…to another…from one hand…to another… 

**…---…**

Himiko shivered as she saw yet another ritual of one of the many Voodoo Child Cursed. This was a boy, maybe in the 18th century, and his ritual was oddly brutal. Oddly, because the first ever ritual (she'd seen that one…it had been Amaya's child, a girl) was simple. A cut on the wrist, a small portion of blood taken. The only common factor Himiko had seen in the rituals so far was that they placed the blood in a crystal vial that was then sealed in a magical sphere. A spell was then performed on the sphere, which then vanished, somewhere inter-dimensional. Himiko's eyesight could not go that far; it followed the sphere for the first few layers of space before she got a faint headache. 

The second rituals were much the same, except that the sphere was a different color. As time passed, other witches performed the rituals on other generations. Apparently, both performers and participants were of the Yueh bloodline. From what Himiko had seen, a cursed generation surfaced at random times, sometimes skipping a decade, sometimes several centuries. Sometimes two or three generations appeared at the same time: the concept of generation was not grandmother-mother-daughter, but first pair to be cursed, second pair to be cursed, third pair to be cursed…and so on. A cursed generation meant only a cursed girl and boy, born roughly at the same time and with magical powers. All generations had to undergo first and second trials at one point or another, and seemed none the worse for it. 

Sometimes, though, due to the information lost over time, the witches performing the trial went overboard and added a lot of their own fancies and formalities. Or their own unorthodox means of gaining blood. 

For example, it wasn't necessary to get blood from the scalp, the jugular vein, and the ankle, then whip the person until his back was raw and bleeding, then grab a torch and… 

Himiko gulped and looked away. Why did she have to be part of this curse? 

She moved to another record, to find another ritual. This was of the 500th generation…a hundred and sixty-six periods before her. 

One thing she'd noticed in the rituals after at least the 10th generation…very little of the cursed knew exactly what her curse was about. And, it was never mentioned in the rituals. The only reference in the rituals was a chant, much like the one that kept going round and round in her head. 

_ Last Children, Voodoo Children  
Doomed to live then die  
Last Child, Voodoo Child,  
Fated to destroy.  
_

Himiko sucked in a breath as it echoed in her mind again. She'd never heard the words from anyone, yet they had surfaced a few months ago, haunting her in her sleep. 

In the rituals of the previous generations, another verse was said: 

_ Last Children, Voodoo Children  
The blood we take is yours  
Last Child, Voodoo Child  
The life you'll give is ours. _

The part about the blood was clear, but the life the Cursed will give? 

It was in future tense…she had noticed another thing, watching these rituals. Following up on the recipients of the curse, none of them had recorded deaths, in their files in the Archives. Amaya and Shinya were included here. As far as she knew the only one who had died…and he wasn't in the records yet, was the male counterpart of her generation, Yamato. So if they did not die, how could they give their lives…unless it hasn't happened yet? 

For some strange reason, the fact that something over a thousand people had not technically died reminded her of the ghosts, swelling outside the barrier of Aesclepius, and the voices inside her head. Were these, then, the… 

She frowned in frustration…some concept was forming vaguely in her mind, but she couldn't grasp it. It was like someone, out there, did not want her to know it, did not want her to find out… 

**…---…**

She found the 665th generation. It was just 50 years before she was born. 

It was here she found the prophecies pertaining to her and Yamato, though not by name. The man who had been cursed in this generation was, apparently, a Seer. 

_ They will be brother and sister, closely bound. More so than usual. He will be her guide, her protector, but his future is unclear. A snake lies in wait for him, one who can either help or harm him…_ Himiko stiffened at this, but read on. _The girl…she is different. Special, almost, more special than the Cursed usually are. Her curse may strike when she turns seventeen…it all depends. Wars will be fought in the Birthplace for her. And the snake is there, too, in her future, but this part is even cloudier than her brother's…_

The record ended here, and she shuddered. The next few pages were blank; for her and for Yamato. 

What would be written on them when the day ended? 

Sighing, she switched to the other record, on the nature of the curse itself. As she approached it, there was a flash of bright light… 

A face appeared before her, alien and smooth. It hung like some gray, alive doorknob in the blackness of the mist. Himiko stepped back, and she thought she felt Emishi snap his whip at it, but the long tendrils passed harmlessly through. She then realized she couldn't see Emishi, only the barest hint of a shadow, but she knew he was right behind her… 

"You may not look," a voice spoke solemnly. "Only a child of the Yueh witches may see what is within. If you are not one of them…then you may not look." 

Himiko stared at it, dumbfounded. Her eyes skimmed over the flat eyes glowing, swirling red and white and green. What should she say? 

"Your name and nature," the thing continued. "State it, and maybe I'll let you see. For without your knowledge, you might be of my blood." 

_His blood? Oh well…_ "Kudo Himiko," she said softly. On a hunch, she added, "Of the Last Generation of the Voodoo Children." 

"Last Child. Himiko. Voodoo Child." The head sounded almost senile, babbling nonsensically. "Yes. Yes. So you are. Come in, then, come in. Decipher my words…" 

It exploded, and she jumped back, and a ghostly pattern of runes spun at her and spread out before her, winking and fading and rippling. 

_Runes?_ It was only then she realized that she'd been reading everything in runes, all along. A split second of time, and then the runes were dissolving and she could see them in words. But… 

She groaned. It looked like German. 

It figured, seeing as Germany was where Amaya and Shinya had studied. Under Ban's grandmother. 

Ban! Maybe he could translate it! 

But how could he, if he wasn't here… 

She tried concentrating on them. Maybe they'd turn into Japanese in another minute, because Amaya and Shinya were Japanese first, German citizens next….but no. 

Suddenly, a shadowy figure leapt in front of her, hands and legs pinwheeling wildly. She gasped and released a cloud of perfume. 

"Agh! No, no, Himiko-san! It's me! It's me! HIMIKO-SAN, SNAP OUT OF IT!" 

The German words shattered and Emishi was there, flopping before her in his wobbliest way, trying to distract her from whatever she had been reading. 

"We have to go NOW! Time's running out!" The hourglass in his hand was almost empty. 

Still, she was reluctant. "Emishi, I haven't found enough…" 

"NO BUTS! NOW!" And he was grabbing her wrist and taking off, running towards the archway that suddenly seemed so far away…. 

**…---…**

Three minutes. 

The Witch Queen gave a small sigh as she arrived at the archway. No sign of them, yet. 

The girl couldn't fail now. 

Being the Witch Queen, she knew the curse, what it would do, what it was. But being the Witch Queen, she could not tell Ban, because Ban was going to use it to fight against the curse, and she as the highest witch had to be neutral in a matter like this, when it was not yet in its fullest. 

She hated this neutrality, sometimes. 

She could only make a move once the curse was in effect, not before that. Magic law bound her to this, and the thing about magic law was that its retributions were swifter, more immediate, and more exact than those of earthly laws. One minute… 

She couldn't even stick a hand through the arch, to pull them through… 

There was a ripple and the rope snapped into place, and Himiko and Emishi were before her, panting. Relief was clear in Emishi's eyes, yet disappointment in Himiko's. She could guess why…she knew how the final, most vital record was written. She smiled, though. Himiko was with her grandson, and her grandson was smart. He'd find a way. 

She extended a hand to them both. "Come," she told them. "The judge will pass your verdict, now" 

**…---…**

Ban frowned. 

Ten more minutes to the next trial, and Himiko and Emishi were not yet back. He wasn't sure if time in his grandmother's library was running at the same speed as that in the Birthplace. And he knew that if the three hours here were up, the next trial would overlap with the one Himiko was having there. And in a place like his grandmother's library…he didn't want that to happen. 

He needn't have worried. The portal opened and Himiko and Emishi came through. The Joker was quivering slightly, and Himiko's shoulders were bowed. She looked disappointed. 

He shot to his feet, fearing the worst. 

"Did you pass?" Ginji asked before he did The others dropped what they were doing, abandoning the tumult of ghosts outside the walls. The portal vanished, and with it, the ghosts dissipated. 

She looked up at them, and frustration was clear in her gaze. "Yes, I did," she said. "But I didn't find out about my curse." Anger shone bright, and she shook her head to clear it. "A whole damn three hours learning about the history of my curse, and I still don't know what it is because the last bit was in damned German…" 

_German?_ Ban began to suggest something, but then Himiko's eyes were suddenly twinkling evilly, looking at him. "Your grandmother says hi, Ban," she said. Then she snickered. "And can I just say, you were so cute in the baby picture on her wall." 

Ban stared, groaned, and covered his eyes. 

_To be continued..._

**A/N:** Two words for this chapter: Information Overload. 0.o Oh well. Next chapter...you'll see. I'll try to have it up soon. And try to make it shorter. Guys, tell me if things get dragging. Sometimes my works have the tendency to. 

Oh, and I'm not sure if the bit about Juubei using his needles to help cure Himiko's ankle is possible, so...; 

**Atropos' Knife:** Hey! Thanks for the greetings. I did okay in my exams. Hehe. This is another long chapter...not as action-packed, though. Thanks for reviewing! 

**Peter the Muggle:** Halu! Thanks for reviewing...this chap's not that visual, I think... 

**undeniablyevil:** DON'T KILL ME FOR TAKING LONG! Read my explanation on top! -points up- and in my bio... 

**obssdGB:** Well, I wanted Natsumi to come along, and it'd be weird if she sprouted some magical power, so I just made her good with a gun. Yup. :D As for Himiko, part of the not-really-magical Voodoo Child thing. 

**Elle30**: Hey! Read "Where do Babies Come From" On Riyuji.Raicho's account, written by Riyuji and me. That's good too. Hehe. Am I a yaoi lover? Well...read my bio. 

**limelie**: Hey limelie! Thanks for reviewing! 

**marbles:** On the contrary, I DO know how many yaoi fics there are out there. That's what made me start writing. ...Pare, medyong late ka. Marami nang hetero, hanapin mo lang. ;p 

**Misao Yuy**: As mentioned before...this isn't so action-packed. Hope you didn't mind... 

**ViL:** I like Aesclepius, too. and Ban's grandma, actually. Hehe. Thank you for the greetings! :D I'm so old! 

**bffimagine**: Here's the next chapter! Sorry it's late. 

**piaposadas:** Hey, pia! :D Hope you liked this chap! 


	5. 9:00: Lull

**Disclaimer:** _Hindi ito sa akin. (This isn't mine) But this version of the curse is._

Boo, people...Hope this didn't take too long. :) 

It's another long one. Brace yourselves.

**Chapter Four: 9:00 AM, Lull **

Ban touched two fingers to Himiko's temples, pressing gently. "Hold still," he instructed. 

The others watched curiously as purple-blue light slid from Ban's fingers, to Himiko's head, then back. The man closed his eyes in concentration, and Himiko gave an involuntary shiver as he probed her mind. 

"Is he really looking at her memory?" Natsumi whispered to Ginji. 

The blond man nodded, watching his partner. "I guess so. That's what he said." 

_"I have an idea," Ban told them sourly, when Himiko and Emishi has stopped laughing and explaining about his picture gallery. He didn't appreciate the grins on the other people's faces. Not when he knew they were laughing at him. _

HEVN patted him on the back. "It's okay, Ban-kun. We won't tell anyone how cute you were." 

"Shut UP already!" he growled. He glared at the laughing Aesclepius. "You, most especially!" 

"What's your idea, Ban-san?" Natsumi asked, trying to spare Ban's feelings. 

"You want to know what your curse is, right?" he asked Himiko. 

The girl sobered almost immediately. "Yes." 

"But you can't, because the record are in German?" 

"And I don't remember any of it," she added, face clouding. 

He shook his head. "It's a recent memory. If you saw the whole record, then the memory of that sight is still floating on top of your subconscious mind. I can get it from there, and transfer it to me so I can translate it." Everyone else was looking at him with as much disbelief as they dared, but not Himiko and Ginji. Or Shido and Emishi. They'd seen enough in this place, and Ban's magic, to believe that anything was possible. 

"Can you do it?" Himiko asked. 

Ban shrugged. "If you let me. I won't look at the private thoughts," he added. 

Himiko thought it over for a while, then nodded. "All right." 

Ginji jumped as he felt Aesclepius's tongue flick out near his ear. "Sorry," the snake apologized, as the young man stepped sheepishly away. "I don't know how to do it without breaking his concentration, but we have to tell him to hurry. The portal's coming." 

"I heard you," Ban mumbled, startling them. His eyes were still closed. "I almost got it…there." 

Himiko had to keep herself from jerking back as she felt a soft, tickling sensation in her mind. Moments later, she felt mental fingers prying gently at her memories, sifting and picking one and drawing it out gently. Then Ban's fingers left her head, and she stumbled backwards, a little dizzy. Kazuki, who was behind her, reached out to steady her, and Ban opened his eyes, weary and dull. "Sorry," he said, as his sight cleared. "That happens sometimes. Thread spool, you may as well go with her next. I have to stay her to decipher this." In his hands was a shimmery substance, colorless, almost, surrounded by his purple-blue magic. He jerked his head at Ginji. "Ginji, spread out your vest." They watched in fascination as he poured Himiko's memory onto the green surface. The substance shrank then pooled over the folds, swirling and melting together. Shadowy words, clearly German, appeared in it, filling the vest from top to bottom. 

As Ban bent over it, Aesclepius nudged Ginji. "Do you mind if I get energy from you, since he's out of it?" 

Ginji nodded, cocking his head. "Okay. I guess." 

"Thank you. Please put your hand on me…" As Ginji did so, the snake let out a musical hiss, and the barrier that sprang up was a strange tapestry of magic shot through with blue veins of electricity. Ginji felt the energy drain from him, but it wasn't so much. Yet. 

A low _boom_ shook the Birthplace, and predictably, the spirits began to appear. They prowled outside the barrier, suddenly wary of the lethal mix of magic and electricity. Juubei sighed and stood, as did Shido, and Emishi, and Paul, Natsumi, and HEVN. Guard work was getting tiring. The portal began to form within the circle, beside Himiko and Kazuki. 

Ban looked up at the two. "Himiko, I don't know when I'll finish this. German six hundred years ago is different from now. Hand me the lighter." He took the object from the girl and murmured something, tapping it with one long finger. A thin line of blue light pulsed into it, then vanished, He tossed it back to Himiko. "If I find anything important, I'll contact you through that. You do know how to flip it open, right?" 

"From watching you and aniki too often? Yes," the girl replied, with a touch of sarcasm. 

He snorted. "I was just asking. If I want to talk to you, you'll feel it grow warm. Then flip it open. Right, now go, before that portal gets too big. Thread spool." He nodded at Kazuki. "Be on guard." 

"Be careful, Kazuki," Juubei called from where he was standing. The tension in his stance told them that he wasn't comfortable with letting the other man go into unknown danger without him… 

What friend would? 

Kazuki nodded. "You can count on me," he said calmly, answering them both. They disappeared into the portal. 

**…---…**

Silence blanketed the world around them. It was complete, absolute. The swishing of their feet through the grass was deafening. 

"Kazuki? Can you hear anything?" Himiko asked in a whisper, afraid to make noise. 

There was a tinkling of bells as the man shook his head, and they both winced. The usually soft sound was too loud in the unnatural silence. "Iie," Kazuki replied. 

"It's too still," Himiko whispered. 

"Un." Kazuki looked from side to side, checking for danger. "It's like…like…" 

"The lull before a storm," a voice answered. The two jumped and looked around, but there was no one in sight. 

Then before them the grass ended, and it was now a cobblestone floor, that spread as far as the eye could see. Standing green and tall and wild was a huge hedge with an opening in it. It looked disturbingly like a… 

Footsteps sounded on the cobblestones, echoing sharp and clear, but they could still see no one. Kazuki yanked out his bells and Himiko made for her perfumes…and that's when she discovered they were missing. 

Kazuki turned sharply at her cry of alarm. "Himiko-san?" he asked anxiously. 

Before she could reply, the judge spoke. "Having difficulty with your perfumes, Miss Himiko?" 

The girl gazed angrily at the spot the voice was coming from…right in front of them. "Where are they?" 

"That's part of your trial." There was a rustle, cloth against cloth. The invisible being seemed to have shifted stance, whether attack, defense, or simple changing of position neither Kazuki nor Himiko could tell. "You have probably noticed the maze, by now?" 

"Hai," Kazuki replied cautiously, but with an edge of steel. "I assume you're going to make us go through it? With Himiko-san's perfumes at the end or at the center?" 

There was definitely a smile in the voice now, and for some odd reason, it made chills creep up the hakobiya girl's spine. "Very good, Ito no Kazuki. You do not disappoint." 

Kazuki tilted his head, slanting his eyes as if trying to look at something. "Who are you, anyway?" 

There was a chuckle. "It's a pity none of you can see me," the voice replied softly. "But there is nothing I can do about it." There was another rustle, then two sheathed knives appeared in midair. "Miss Himiko, I believe you left these in the last trials. You may use them, since you are without your perfumes for now. The knives dipped, then were tossed to the girl. She caught them deftly and belted them on, eyes still fixed on the spot the judge's pleasant voice was coming from. "You know," the judge remarked. "You do surprisingly well with them." 

"Thank you," Himiko replied icily. 

They sensed the judge bow. "My pleasure." The footsteps echoed once more, then footprints appeared in the grass, coming towards them. "As Ito no Kazuki has guessed, you are to find your way through the maze to locate your perfumes. There are obstacles. Nothing you can't handle." A chill breeze passed by the, and suddenly his voice was right beside their ears "Don't' take too long." 

Kazuki stiffened. 

The footsteps disappeared, and he was gone. 

Himiko shook her head, exasperated, then she noticed Kazuki's expression. "You all right?" 

Kazuki didn't reply for a while, then he, too, shook his head. "It's nothing. I just thought I recognized the voice." 

"You noticed, too?" Himiko shrugged as the thread man nodded. "I've been trying to place it, since I first heard it, but…" She trailed of and stood still for a moment, then turned to the maze. "Come one," she said, a note of determination in her voice. "The sooner we start, the sooner we get over this." 

**…---…**

Natsumi ducked behind Aesclepius to reload her gun. "I didn't know I was so low on bullets," she commented. 

"Are you having trouble, Natsumi-chan?" Ginji asked. His hand was still on Aesclepius, lending the snake strength. 

She shook her head, hair whipping around her face. "Iie. It's not so bad." She got up and ran to her sport. "Later, Gin-chan!" 

"She can be so cheerful, even in a time like this," Shido said. His portion of the shield was right behind them. He looked at Ginji, eyes suddenly thoughtful. "In fact, she's much like you." 

Ginji grinned, then looked down as he felt spiky hair brush his legs. "Ban-chan?" 

His partner straightened his back and took off his glasses, rubbing tiredly at his eyes. "'M fine," he mumbled. 

Ginji knelt, still keeping his hand against the scales of the snake. He peered into his best friend's face. "No, you're not," he chided. "Ban-chan, you haven't slept since yesterday." 

A blurry blue gaze fixed itself on Ginji. "Neither have you." 

"Yes I have." 

Ban grimaced. This was Ginji, after all, who needed only a few minutes of sleep to recharge. The meager ten minutes he'd snatched before the trial in the Mayan temple had been enough the tank up the Thunder Emperor. And Ban really hadn't slept in a while… "In a minute. I need to translate this damn record, first…" 

"I though you got the old German more or less figured out already," Ginji said. 

"I did," Ban growled. "But the damn words are too shadowy and keep rippling around…" 

Both jumped at the sudden sharp crackle that followed. Shido turned from where he had struck down an imp trying to get through the barrier. "Sorry." 

Aesclepius suddenly turned his head at Ban and hissed something. Magic slipped off his tongue, and Ginji watched, fascinated, as it settled over the vest and the words brightened, solidified, and stilled. 

Ban's hand waved tiredly at the snake. "Thanks." 

"You should have though of that earlier." 

"Shut up." 

"What does it say, Ban-chan?" Ginji asked. Behind him, Shido kept an ear out, too, trying to listen. 

Ban bent over the best and squinted. After a moment, he began to read haltingly. _"None…but the Witch Queen and those of the Voodoo Children can look._ Hah." He allowed himself a satisfied smirk. _"The Curse of the Voodoo Chidren. We, Yueh Shinya and Yueh Amaya, for the…benefit of the Archives and formality of Records, have written down the details and mechanics of the Voodoo Child curse…"_

**…---…**

Himiko stumbled again, and Kazuki sighed as he steadied her. "Himiko-san, that's the fifth time…" 

"I'm all right, Kazuki," the girl said, shaking her head at him. "I just…" 

"Haven't slept in a day and a half, from what I heard," the annaiya firmly pushed her down, forcing her to lean against the hedge. "Sleep." 

Himiko sat up straight. "No! We don't have time…" 

"You won't survive in whatever is to come if you're asleep on your feet," the thread man said firmly. "We have three hours?" 

"I think so." Himiko rubbed her eyes tiredly. She stifled a yawn. Kazuki's talk of sleeping had intensified her drowsiness. 

The man smiled softly. "See? You can barely keep your eyes open. I have a method to tell time. I'll stand guard; you sleep for an hour." 

"Thirty minutes," Himiko insisted stubbornly. 

"Forty-five." 

"Thirty-five." 

"Forty. And that's the last I'll allow you." 

Himiko groaned. "Fine." 

"Good." The man smiled again; she was asleep already. 

There was a soft tinkling, as Kazuki drew out his strings, twining some of them together. Then, he kept his bells, leapt to the top of the hedge, and disappeared. 

**…---…**

Ban was asleep, dozing against Aesclepius's side. Ginji had finally convinced him to rest, if even for a meager thirty minutes. The vest lay by Ban's hand, words still written across it. The letters neither faded nor moved. 

Ginji suddenly felt muscles bunch under his palm, and the strange sense of a hot, heady rush… 

"Ban," Aesclepius hissed urgently. His enormous head turned, and the snake's eyes were wide and dilated. "Ban!" 

Shido's head whipped around, and he eyed the snake cautiously, a warning rising up in him. 

"BAN!" The snake's body gave a convulsive jerk, and Ban's eyes flew open as he was flung forward. Instead of rebuking the snake, he fixed alert, sharp eyes on him, body suddenly tense. "Don't tell me…" 

The only reply was a violent hiss. Beside the snake, Shido looked at Ban. "Midou?" 

Ginji still had his hand on the snake, but now the brown eyes were surveying the spirit thoughtfully, piercing deep, beyond the scales. 

"Ginji, take your hand off him and step away," Ban said, ignoring the questioning glances of the Beastmaster. 

Ginji glanced at Ban. "But Ban-chan, the shield…" 

A mirthless smile crossed Ban's face. "Don't worry about it. Just do it." 

Ginji hesitated, then complied. Immediately, the threads of electricity in the barrier disappeared, and the ghosts outside gave a murmur of glee. The perimeter guards tensed, stepped back… 

The shield flickered at another tension-laded hiss from the spirit snake and glowed a threatening, bloody red. 

An unlucky ghost who had attacked too soon shrieked as the redness devoured it, corroding its plasmic flesh like acid. 

There was a stunned silence inside the barrier. "What…is that?" HEVN asked faintly. 

Juubei, though, had a different question. "Why does it smell like blood?" 

"Everyone, move away from the shield, and stay at the far end. Away from Aesclepius's head." Ban, apparently, was not entertaining any questions. The steel-calm undertone of his voice made them all obey. Yet he himself did not move from his position beside the snake. 

"There will be no need of a perimeter guard, for a while," he added. "You may as well sleep. Rest, or something." 

"Ban, what's happening?" Paul asked tersely. 

The snake man nodded pleasantly at him. "I'll tell you if it gets worse." 

"That's no help, Ban-kun," HEVN snapped. Emishi nodded vigorously in agreement, while Natsumi and Juubei remained silent. 

"Sorry, that's all I can do." The man then turned to the only people who hadn't moved. "Oi, what are you two waiting for?" 

Ginji shrugged. He knew Ban, and knew Aesclepius. He'd figured out what was happening by now. And Shido…well, he was the Beastmaster. "I can help you if he gets out of hand," he informed the other. 

Ban snorted. "Never needed any help, monkey-man." 

"He's not in your body now, snake bastard," Shido pointed out. 

Ban grinned. "Point." He put out a hand and lightly brushed it over the snake's scales. Ginji watched as the hand pulled away, and noted the faint, red, mist-like aura that clung to it, before Ban passed the hand over his eyes. The blue in them suddenly seemed less tired, like he'd just taken a shot of caffeine. "May as well use the extra energy to keep awake." 

In the silence within the barriers, Ban bent over the words on the vest once more. 

**…---…**

Himiko blinked groggily and opened her eyes. She was alone, slumped against one of the leafy walls of the maze. Her companion was nowhere to be seen. Not even a whisper of a bell was to be heard. 

She stood silently, turning to look for the thread man. "Kazuki?" she called, as loud as she dared. "Kazuki?" 

No one answered. 

Sunlight glinted off something very near her face: tilting her head to the side, she saw a fine thread, crossed by another, and another. 

It finally registered that she was inside one of Kazuki's thread barriers. She sighed, crossing her arms. Apparently he had gone off to explore, and left her here with protection, but how she was going to get out and find him now she had no idea… 

A muffled curse, the jerking tinkles that accompanied a running man with bells attached. String whistled cuttingly through the air, and there was a high, animalistic shriek, and sound like flapping wings, and a male gasp. The girl jerked her head up, to see Kazuki on top of the hedge, hard pressed by a creature that looked like a fanged pterodactyl. 

"Kazuki!" Her knives were out and she was slicing through the barrier, faint surprise slipping through her as the blades cut the Fuuchoin string. Threads bit at her as she leapt on top of the hedge. The man turned. "Himiko-san!" 

"Duck!" The man fell flat, and the creature swooped over him, beak tearing at his shirt and barely biting his flesh. Its eyes glinted red as it wheeled away, and it sped back to aim for Himiko… 

She sidestepped neatly and, with one swoop, chopped off its head. But in its death throes, it knocked her off the hedge top. 

A cry escaped her lips before she was caught gently in a cradle of threads. 

"Himiko-san, are you all right?" Kazuki was still prone on top of the hedge, his threads twined among the topmost brambles and keeping her safe. 

She expelled a breath. "Hai. Arigato." She glanced curiously up, where he and the carcass of the beast lay. "Why's the hedge so strong? It's holding you up pretty well." 

The man rolled to his feet, and shrugged. "It's either magically reinforced, or there's a wall under it. I'm thinking more of the former, since I can't feel any stone." He leapt down lightly, and his threads set the girl gently down, before whispering back into his bells. 

The girl dusted herself off. "How long have I been asleep?" 

The man took out a thick bundle of threads that had partially unraveled. A sheepish look crossed his face. "Er…one hour?" 

"What?!" Himiko whirled around. "Kazuki!" 

"I found the way to the second level. It takes only twenty minutes, if you take no detours," Kazuki said, to pacify her. 

Himiko raised her eyebrow at him. "And where did you spend the other forty minutes?" 

"Finding my way there and fighting that…thing. Let's go. I marked the way." 

He set off, and she had to quicken her pace to keep up. She caught the faint glint of the thread they were following, taut in midair. Then, Kazuki's words came back to her. "Kazuki…second level?" 

"The maze is built in three levels, from what I could see. At the center of this maze is the second, and at the center of the second the third." A dark cast seemed to come over Kazuki's eyes. "It's oddly like Mugenjou." 

"And there are no obstacles?" Himiko asked disbelievingly. 

"I saw none…What the?!" 

A portion of the hedge slid forward, blocking their way. Seated on top was a tiny, green-gray imp, grinning mischievously and maliciously down at them. 

"They'd react to me. Not to you," the girl told Kazuki dryly. 

He whipped out his bells. "I have not time for this!" 

Hedge, imp, leaves and branches were slashed into a thousand pieces as the strings flew out, and before the stunned Himiko could react, he yanked her forward and ran. 

**…---…**

"It's his bloodlust, isn't it?" Juubei asked Shido quietly. 

Natsumi and HEVN sucked in small, frightened breaths, but Emishi and Paul only started, then nodded. It made sense. 

The Beastmaster glanced sideways to where Ban and Ginji remained within the snake's striking range, and nodded. "Aa. Apparently he wasn't expecting it, and wants us to stay away. That's what I understood from what he hissed at Ban." 

"Oh," Natsumi said in a small voice. 

Ban, in the meantime, was nearing the end of the vest, his blue eyes narrowing in disgust and anger. He muttered an obscenity that made Ginji stare. "Ban-chan?" 

"Wait." Ginji watched as his partner reached the end, muttered a spell, and let the memory break into a million shards of glittering light. He sat back on his heels and let out a soft stream of curses…in different languages. 

"Ban-chan. What's wrong?" 

"The damned curse," Ban said, standing and handing the vest back to his best friend. "Thanks." 

"Ban-san?" Natsumi called from the other end. 

"I have to talk to Himiko first," Ban told them. He walked to Aesclepius's head, and touched the snake above the eye. Ginji and Shido tensed, fearing the snake's bloodlust, but the spirit merely looked at Ban. The walls continued to pulse a uniform, liquid red. 

"Help me," Ban told the snake. 

Aesclepius's eyes glazed over, and a light red mist rose around them both. 

**…---…**

Himiko and Kazuki arrived at the entrance to the second level. The hedge rose higher here, more than twice their height. A tunnel in the shrubbery was the only entrance, dark and gloomy. They saw the faint outline of stairs. 

"How long did we take?" Himiko asked. 

Kazuki glanced at the thick length of strings again, and the girl saw, for the first time, that it was unraveling bit by bit, stopping at certain marks each time. "A little under twenty minutes." He gave a small smile. "Not bad, considering all the things we ran into." 

"Remind me never to get into your way," the girl remarked, only half-joking. 

"Or yours," he countered. "How's the wound?" 

She held up a hastily wrapped arm. Blood soaked through the white cloth, torn from Kazuki's shirt, but she grinned. "All right. Yours?" 

A long scratch bled freely on his shin, but he shrugged. "It's not that deep. Let's go up." 

They began to climb the stairs, slowly. 

It was unexpectedly cold and dark in the tunnel, more like they were underground than in the hedge. Kazuki kept alert, looking around warily. "This place is strange." 

Himiko shivered. "I know." 

Something in her tone made the man look at her. "Himiko-san?" 

She stopped climbing, as did he. "There's something here, Kazuki." 

"Can you do anything about it?" 

"No," she replied. "Ban told me not to use any…" she stopped, and stared. "Kazuki, look." 

The end of the tunnel was far ahead. But bobbing towards them was a fleet of shimmering, ethereal lights. As pretty as they looked, there was a creepy, chill feel to them. 

"Ghost lights," was the first thing that came to his mind, and the first thing he said. 

"I don't want to meet them." She suddenly sounded like a frightened child. 

"Let's go back." 

"It's gone." 

"What?" When he looked where they'd come from, the entrance was gone. He drew Himiko against the wall, motioning her to stay flat against it. "Don't let them touch you. And keep still." Cold fingers of fear traced up his spine, and he, too, shivered. 

There was total, utter silence as the lights drew nearer and nearer, in a strange, solemn procession. They glimpsed ghost-light glancing off pearly, transparent flesh; skeletal limbs, hollow eyes. Men, women, in all manner of dress and of all ages… 

They were so close that the two could make out individual features. 

Then they were there. Surrounding them, like a cold tide of death, flowing in and out and around them, like a stream of non-substance around rock. Kazuki shivered, and tried not to make a sound, even as his senses picked up the unearthly, soundless rhythm that seemed to accompany the undead… 

Himiko let out a small cry, and she pushed past him, running up the steps. 

"Himiko-san!" he tried to stop her, but she slipped away. 

"Himiko!" She was leaping up, two steps at a time, ignoring the river of ghosts around her. He ran, too, pushing through the spirits, feeling their cold and non-life pulsing in them and pushing at him… 

They burst through a wall in a shower of leaves and twigs, and she collapsed onto the cobblestone floor of the second level. He crouched and tried to help her up, and she was deathly pale. "Himiko-san, what happened? Why…" 

"They were draining me," she said weakly. "I…I could feel it. They sucked out some of me, and it was like when Ban probed my mind, like a thousand tiny fingers searching in me, but these were violating, and trying to tear me away. They almost…they almost did…" Color returned to her cheeks, and she made to stand. "The lighter. It's warm." 

Curiously, Kazuki watched as she fished out her brother's lighter and flicked it open. A ball of pale flame shot out, smoldering gently in midair. To his amazement, Ban appeared in it. 

Himiko motioned for them to walk, so they wouldn't lose time. As they continued onwards, she turned back to the lighter. "Ban?" 

**...---… **

"I'm finished reading," he told her. He didn't know if the others could hear him, and he didn't care. He just focused on the lithe girl that appeared in the red mist surrounding him and the snake. 

Aesclepius's tongue flicked lazily in and out. 

Himiko nodded. "Thanks," she said. "What did it say?" 

He scowled. "Nothing I expected. 

"Yueh Shinya and Amaya wanted…to live forever, in a way. To reach a certain height of power, so they could take over a few worlds, wreck a few million lives…the usual greedy wishes of any black magic-user." Damn, I need a smoke. "At the same time, they wanted to ensure that their descendants would be powerful rulers, too. 

"So they made your curse. For balance, they decided it to be applicable to both males and females. Since they had no brothers, Amaya represented the females, and Shinya the males. Fifty years or so after creating the curse and separating from the obaasan, they sent themselves into stasis, not to be seen again. The stasis was carefully fashioned so that they could observe what was happening to the cursed ones. 

"Meanwhile, on earth, the next cursed generation consisted of Amaya's daughter of and Shinya's son. Then the two grandchildren of the daughter, a girl and a boy. The fourth generation was a girl from Shinya's line and a boy from Amaya's…random people. So on and so forth. 

"There were six hundred and sixty-five generations before you, of girls and boys each. But of those people, over a thousand, including Amaya and Shinya, not one has died." Ban nodded at Himiko's stunned look. "At their supposed 'deaths', they all went into deep stasis in other dimensions. That's part of the curse. I'm pretty sure some of them are the ones outside the barrier, right now. 

"You and Yamato are the Last Children. You two are supposedly the ones with the most powerful potential." Ban's eyes were seeping blue fire now, thunderous and cold. "At the appointed time, you two are supposed to inherit all the spirits, all the preceding generations, and their power. When they say inherit, they mean you'll get possessed. In the process, you, your personality, your individuality…and that of the other cursed ones…will all be lost. Except for two: Amaya and Shinya. They will be the ones to control whatever creatures were raised in your and Yamato's place." 

"So…" Himiko whispered. 

Ban let out a breath. "Had Yamato's curse come into fullness, his body would have become the vessel of all the male recipients of the Curse, with Shinya to control them. He would have disappeared that day, to begin the conquering of the other worlds." The eyes met hers, piercing and serious. "But you…if you fail, you won't only inherit the spirits of the females. Since…since I blew the chance of their using Yamato, you'll get everyone. The whole thousand spirits." His eyes hardened. "Don't let any spirits touch you. They might try to possess you." 

"They…they've tried already…" Whispering and taunting, swelling in her mind… 

"What?!" 

"Kazuki…Kazuki and I ran into a wave of them. We couldn't hide…Ban…" she was shivering, as she heard the voices in her head again, calling to her, frightening her, and it seemed that this time she could see faces accompanying the voices, faces from a history that was not hers yet an integral part of her future… 

"Himiko." He seemed to stretch out a hand, and she could almost feel the reassuring grip on her shoulder. "I made a promise to Yamato. I'm going to keep it." 

In spite of the calm in his voice, she knew he wasn't certain if he _could_ keep it…but he was going to try his damndest. 

But… 

"Don't throw away your life," she whispered sharply. 

He snorted. "Don't tell me what to do." He waved a hand. "Go finish the damn trial. Be careful…and tell the thread spool to be careful, too, or samurai kid will kill me." His expression softened, the tiniest bit, because he could see she was still in shock. "Hey. You're a tough kid. You always were." He tried to wink at her, tried to be cheerful. "We can do this." 

"I'll see you later," she managed weakly. 

He grinned tightly, then the connection broke. 

Ban blinked as the red mist cleared, and he could feel the violent pounding of his heart. If Himiko failed… 

He shook his head. _She won't_ ,he told himself firmly. Her wide, frightened eyes seemed to fill his vision for a moment. 

_I won't let her. _

"Ban-chan." 

Ginji was there, gripping his shoulder and giving his own comfort, because he could see the tension in Ban's stance, the haggard worry in his eyes. Ban looked at him gratefully, before raising an eyebrow in question. 

"We won't let that happen to Himiko-chan," the blond man said quietly. 

The confidence of a Thunder Emperor. The promise of a friend. 

Ban nodded. "Aa. We won't." 

**…---…**

They were walking swiftly through the maze, carefully marking their way with string, in case they had to double back and find another way. Kazuki was on top of the hedge, trying to spot the way to the third level. Himiko was on the ground, silent and deep in thought. 

Kazuki looked down at the girl. "Himiko-san," he called softly. "Don't worry about it too much." 

She didn't look up, but he saw her shake her head a little, as she tried to disperse the whisperings in her head. "That's...not exactly what I'm thinking about." 

Kazuki jumped down, and stopped her, placing his hands on her shoulders. "Midou-san's right. You're strong, and you'll make it." At his words, the voices in her head died down, a little. He tilted his head and gave a small smile. "After all, we're here helping you." He touched her chin gently, making her look up at him. "Come on. I want to see a smile." 

She had to crack a weak one, at this. 

He nodded, and leapt back to the top of the hedge. "That'll have to do. Come on. We have to hurry." He glanced at the strings he used to keep time. "We have an hour left." 

Himiko quickened her pace. "Where do we turn…" 

Her words were cut off by a scream as a pit appeared suddenly at her feet. 

"Himiko!" 

She leapt off the crumbling rocks and barely managed to catch the topmost branches of the hedge. Kazuki ran to her aid and hauled her up. "Keep alert, Himiko-san," he said dryly. "It might keep your mind off things." 

But the girl was looking away from him, eyes fixed on the horizon. "Kazuki. Look." 

The man turned, and saw, far off, a building mass of thunderheads, threatening and towering. Lightning flashed in their depths, yet there was no sound. 

The words of the judge came back to him. "The lull before the storm…" 

Himiko remembered, too. "It's coming." Passing the pit, she leapt down and began to run. "Kazuki. Let's hurry." 

He sprinted along the top of the hedge, eyes darting to and fro. "Wait…I got it. Himiko-san, this way!" 

**…---…**

_Forty-eight minutes left. _

Himiko ducked as a tall, armor-shod, goblin-like creature swung a huge axe at her. She ducked, darted forward, and jumped, somersaulting over her opponent's head and spinning immediately as she landed. Her knives flew out, flashing as they bit deep into a weak spot of the armor, severing the creature's neck. Blue-black blood sprayed out in a warm, hot fountain, and the goblin let out a gargling, strangled cry before collapsing to its knees. 

She retrieved her knife and glanced over to Kazuki, who had strung his opponent up on a web. The man turned and made a gesture, and the web began to tighten mercilessly around his opponent's limbs. Himiko averted her eyes and jerked her head to the tunnel entrance. "We're done. Come on." 

They were at the entrance of the third level already, and they wasted no time, for they had little left. 

Kanji carved into the cobblestones caught Himiko's eye. "The Cave of Time?" 

There was a dim, confusing flash. 

"Gah!" Kazuki tumbled and landed hard on his hands and knees. Himiko was thrown off-balance, too, but she managed not to fall, and she reached down to help Kazuki. He grabbed her hand and pulled himself up, looking around. "What happened?" 

The walls were dark and translucent: a dim, quartz-like blue. Elusive substances hid behind them, floating, pouring, shifting into each other. Reminding them of Time somehow, and how it was slowly slipping away. 

"I don't know." Himiko shook her head and tugged him forward. "This cave feels wrong. I want to get out."

They ran again, but Kazuki stopped and looked at the walls. "Himiko, that's…" 

On one wall was a large, life-sized portrait of a beautiful woman with long green hair. On the opposite was an equally life-sized portrait of an ugly old hag. 

After Amaya and Shinya's portraits came more: a long line of people down the hall that sloped upwards, disappearing to a point yet unseen. 

"Who are they?" Kazuki asked. 

A chill ran through Himiko as she looked at the other portraits, and an awful certainty. "These are all the Voodoo Children. Kazuki, let's go." 

**…---…**

_Thirty minutes left. _

Forty minutes left. 

Five minutes left. 

Twenty minutes left. 

Time slowed, sped, stopped, resumed. Sometimes it flowed normally, sometimes it doubled back on itself. They couldn't tell what, they couldn't tell which, as they ran on and on through the blue-quartz walls. The pulsing behind the walls confused them, disoriented them. In his hand, Kazuki could feel the string writhing, unraveling, re-raveling…he couldn't tell. This cave, apparently, was justified in being called the Cave of Time. 

In front of him, Himiko stopped short, gasping for breath. Kazuki stopped, too, and stared at what was before him. 

The smooth, blue walls converged before him in a dead end. Hung directly in front of them were two frames, made for life-sized portraits. They were empty. 

Kazuki could guess whose pictures were supposed to be there. 

Below the portraits were three tunnels, with three intricately carved statues of beautiful, ethereal women set just to the right of each entrance. All three tunnels, Kazuki saw, sloped upwards. He turned to Himiko. "Which one should we take?" 

The girl was obviously trying to ignore the portraits. Keeping her eyes on the tunnels, she stepped forward to take a look. 

Blue lines filled each of the tunnels, igniting suddenly and unexpectedly, and the statues stretched, moved, and were filled with light. The ladies came alive, and laughed as they spun merrily, landing lightly in front of the tunnels and blocking their way. 

Kazuki and Himiko stepped back and brought out their weapons. 

The three ladies, still laughing, just looked at them through luminescent, not-ordinary eyes. To their surprise, they bowed, the respectful gesture clearly aimed at Himiko. "Voodoo Child, where would you like to pass?" 

Himiko stared. "Do you think it's a trap?" she said in a low tone, without turning her head. 

Kazuki shrugged, still ready to fight. "We don't have a choice." 

Himiko nodded, and stepped forward again. The blue lines in the tunnels grew brighter. "Where do these lead?" she asked politely. 

The leftmost girl curtseyed and gave a flourish. "I am She Who Leads to the Past." 

The center girl inclined her head gracefully. "I am She Who Captures the Present." 

The rightmost girl merely smiled, bowing her head so that they could not see her eyes. "I am She Who Guards the Future." 

"Past, present, future…present. It's the most obvious way," Kazuki said, keeping his strings and beginning to step forward. 

"That's why I don't want to take it." Himiko stopped him, and looked thoughtfully at the tunnels. 

Time ticked away, slow and all too fast, in her head. 

_Past. Present. Future. _

"The past," she said softly. "Will take us somewhere we've been before. And we won't necessarily have the same amount of time we did at that point. At least, I don't think we will." 

Kazuki listened. 

"Present…" A light dawned in her eyes, and she set her lips in a firm line. "Presently, we're right here, in this spot. I don't think we'll move." 

"It's the future, then," Kazuki said. 

She nodded. "I think so." Worry crossed her face. "I hope so." 

She turned to She Who Guards the Future and bowed. "May we pass?" 

The girl smiled, nodded, and stepped aside as they stepped into the tunnel, feeling magic tingling along their skin. 

The world spun and faded in lines of blue and black. 

**…---…**

Ban glanced up at Aesclepius. "How many minutes?" 

The snake didn't answer right away. The redness in his eyes cleared away first, as Ban's question registered. He let out a labored hiss as the bloodlust pounded through his veins. "Ten more," he managed to answer, before sinking into a trance again. 

Ginji stiffened, and glanced at Ban. 

The others did likewise, the same thoughts running through their heads. _Himiko's trials are usually done by now. _

Ban was focused on some far-off point, his blue eyes hard and cold. "Just a little more," he whispered. "Come on…" 

**…---…**

Kazuki and Himiko burst out in another shower of leaves and twigs. Himiko let out a breath and allowed a small smile to cross her face. "I was right," she said. "How much time?" 

Kazuki looked at the string. His brown eyes widened with horror, and he let out a curse. 

Himiko was alarmed. "Kazuki?" 

"Don't ask." The man threw away the string and leapt on top of the hedge. "The Cave of Time was trickier than we knew." 

A forbidding feeling ran through Himiko. She asked no questions, and began to run as he tried to spot the way… 

A faint scent caught her nose. She stopped, and smelled it again. 

"Kazuki!" 

From the top of the hedge, he turned to look at her. 

"I can smell my tracking perfume! It's this way!" 

**…---…**

_Five minutes left. _

Kazuki was cursing inwardly. The third maze was the hardest, the longest, and the most confusing. It seemed to be bigger than the second and first maze combined. Apparently the mazes had not only been three different levels…they were three different worlds. 

Himiko was sure of where she was going, though. She could smell the perfume at the center of the maze. 

_Four minutes left._

There was a low rumble of thunder, and Kazuki looked up worriedly. The clouds they had seen on the horizon of the second maze were here, too, and gathering above them. The sky darkened. Himiko glanced up, shook her head, and continued to run. 

Kazuki decided not to say anything and followed her example, even as a brief flash of lightning illuminated the darkness above him. 

That's when the demon struck. 

Himiko let out a scream, but was shoved aside as a flurry of long hair and bells attacked the demon about to gut her. Whirling out of the way, she gasped as she saw the demon slam Kazuki into the hedge, and was alarmed when she saw the spurt of red, human blood. 

"Kazuki!" Her knives were out and she leapt onto the demon, who knocked her away and almost took a bite out of her leg. 

String captured the demon's limbs, and the monster roared and flung its head back. Kazuki, bleeding but still strong, shook his head at Himiko. "Himiko-san! Run! Finish your trial!" 

The girl gazed at him in disbelief. "And leave you?" 

"It's the only way! Go!" 

It less than a second for the girl to decide. "No way." 

"Himiko!" 

She leapt forward and slashed at the demon with her knives. 

Black blood stained the cobblestones with an acidic hiss, and the demon roared and broke free, knocking Kazuki and Himiko apart. Both scrambled to their feet and attacked again. 

But a bright flare of lightning roared down from the sky. 

Himiko screamed, and she faintly heard Kazuki's yell, as the bolt tore the ground, rock and shrapnel flying under the tremendous burst of energy. And she knew, with sudden certainty, that her time was up. 

Out of the hole in the ground rose a black swarm of malicious magic, spreading over the maze and engulfing them all, smothering her senses and tangling her in itself. Dark stars winked in and out of her vision, and a sudden lightheadedness overcame her, as she began to slip away. She could only imagine what the reaction of Ban would be, when he found out. 

_Ban…_

She knew no more. 

**…---…**

Aesclepius's eyes jerked wide with alarm, and he reared and hissed, the shield growing redder and darker. 

Outside, the horde of supernatural creatures let out a long, joyful scream. 

Ban's eyes widened in disbelief, as the ground of the Birthplace began to shake. 

"Ban-kun!" HEVN cried, as she fought for balance. The others leapt to their feet, asking frantically what was happening. 

Ginji felt his heart stop when his partner turned, blue eyes stunned. 

"They didn't make it." 

_To be continued..._

**bluejem**: Hehe...masaya ka at first reviewer ka, no? :D Yes, I like Ban's lola too. Yap, I'm healed fully...thanks! 

**undeniablyevil**: Hope I updated on time. I tried. Thanks for reviewing! 

**Atropos'Knife:**: Yap, conjuctivitis. It was only a mild case, though, and I'm okay now. You update, now! :D -peace!- 

**Mayumi-san**: Halo, Mayumi-san! Thanks for reviewing! 

**frozenRogue:** I'm continuing, I'm continuing. Hope you...enjoyed this chapter. 

**limelie:** Hi, limelie, watsap? Thanks for reviewing! 

**marbles:** Heto na, po, and ika-apat na chapter. Enjoy. 

**Elle30:** You read Where Do Babies? :D REVIEW! haha...Riyuji and I will be happy. The ideas...? I don't know. Some people believe someone else takes over when I write. :D Wahaha...just kidding. Who knows where they come from? 

**NekoRanmaHP-AnimeKaizen**: Opo, ako'y isang Pilipino! Talaga, magkapinsan kayo ni limelie? Kilala mo na rin si obssdGB? Wehehe... The "legend", because I don't think it really is one, was told to me by my friend. Malapit ang bahay ko sa isang BF gate. Outside the gate is a rotunda. If you're driving around the area daw at around three A.M. a black car will appear and follow you around the rotunda, and no one will be driving. Or something like that. She claims it happened to one of _her_ friends. And she's the same one who told me three A.M. is devil's hour. Thanks for the extra "ghostly info!" I'll keep it in mind... :D 


	6. 12:00 Noon Storm: Doubled Trial

**A/N:**_Sorry it took so long. Balancing exams, tutoring people, trying to practice for caroling, arranging a rummage sale, making stuff and writing is hard. ;; _

Much hinting here. But that's as far as it'll go, promise. :) 

By the way...Riyuji will kill me for advertising him again, but please read and review his Ghosts at School fic, "Snapshots". It's cool. You can find it in (duh) his account. 

This chapter's long again. Look at the title of the chapter, and you'll see why. 

**Chapter Five: 12 NN, Storm: Doubled Trial **

"What do you mean, they didn't make it?" Juubei demanded of Ban. The samurai didn't care that the ground was jerking like hell or that the shield was becoming unsteady. Kazuki was somewhere out there, most probably in danger. And he wasn't there to help. 

Emishi and Shido were tense beside him, ready to restrain him if his normally stoic temper rose too high. 

But Ban wasn't listening, not really. His eyes were narrowed slits, his hands gripped tightly into fists. Somehow, he reminded the Mugenjou people of MakubeX calculating, mind moving with incredible speed and logic. "There's a chance," the man muttered softly. He gestured sharply to Ginji. "Ginji. Come with me." 

His best friend was pale and grim, mind on Kazuki and Himiko. "Un. Where, Ban-chan?" 

"I'm going to try to get to them," Ban said, as he moved towards Aesclepius. Then he stopped, and looked at the Beastmaster. "Monkey man—Shido." 

Shido looked at him in surprise. "What?" He stumbled as the Birthplace gave another convulsive jerk. A strange, rumbling sound filled the air. 

"I'm leaving Aesclepius here. Can you handle him if he loses it?" 

Beside the barrier, Natsumi, HEVN and Paul were hastily moving the supplies and the firearms, not wanting to know what would happen if the objects made contact with the shield. Paul barely managed to grab Natsumi as the ground shook, throwing her off-balance and nearly causing her to hit the red mass. 

Shido hesitated, then said quietly, "I'm not sure. Is he causing all this?" 

Ban shook his head once. "That's part of the turbulence caused by Himiko's trials." Blue eyes pierced him thoughtfully, and the Beastmaster felt a slight pressure, as if he were being tested. "I think he'll listen to you," Ban said softly, more to himself. "But…" 

"Ban," Aesclepius grated out, and the man glanced sharply at him. Redness pulsed beneath the snake's scales, lying just behind his eyes. Fangs flashed as the spirit opened his mouth to speak. "Leave Ginji. I may listen to Shido, but I'm more certain I'll listen to Ginji." 

"But…" Ginji began. 

"I'll go with you," Juubei told Ban, before either Get Backer could protest. 

Ban looked at him, and sighed. "Fine. Because thread spool might need you." He turned to Ginji. "Ginji. If there's trouble, tell me." He jerked a thumb at the other people in the circle. "Take care of them." 

"Be careful, Ban-chan," Ginji said quietly. 

Ban nodded, then walked over to Juubei. A blue-purple circle of flame sprung around them. "Cooperate with me," Ban muttered, whether to the magic or the other man no one could tell. 

"You might get your ass fried if you try it that way," a calm voice stated. 

Everyone jumped about a foot in the air when they saw the man who had arrived in the group unnoticed. No one knew him, except… 

"Yamato-san!" Ginji exclaimed. Ban just stared. 

"Well, hurry up," the spirit told Ban. 

Ban snapped out of it. "What the hell are you…" 

"Oh shut up a bit, Ban." Himiko's brother strode forward and gripped Ban and Juubei by the arm. There was a glowing, spreading brilliance, and all three disappeared. 

Immediately, the tremors subsided. 

**……**

They walked through flatness, a dark-light no-space that touched many worlds and held many ways. Ban shook off the oppressive heaviness that was threatening to suffocate him and caught up with Yamato, who was some way ahead. "Why the hell are you here, and where have you been?" 

"You're not glad to see me?" his dead friend asked, stretching out his hands to the sides as if feeling for something. 

Ban swore in irritation, and a grin stretched over Yamato's face. "Dammit, Yamato, stop baiting me!" 

"I was watching Amaya and Shinya," the ghost said, suddenly serious. "This trial has been in preparation for months now. They covered and considered every possible event that could have happened on the midnight of Himiko's birthday. Sorry if I didn't pop up during that time to say hi." 

"Midou, what is this place?" Juubei asked. 

"What does it feel like to you, Kakei-san?" Yamato asked, before Ban could answer. 

The samurai doctor was silent for a moment, before answering, "…Strange. The Birthplace was substantial, though open. But this place...it's unreal. For some reason, it reminds me of one of a secret passage behind a wall, or one of the back alleys in Mugenjou that none but the VOLTS know about." 

"And that's what it is," Yamato said, as he continued to look for…whatever he was looking for. 

"Who are you?" Juubei asked, turning his head to the ghost. 

"I wasam, Kudo Himiko's elder brother." 

Juubei cocked his head. "Your voice is strange." 

Yamato raised an eyebrow. "Oh?" 

Ban remained silent, wondering what Juubei would say. 

The samurai nodded. "It doesn't come from vocal chords." He paused. "More like, it's just present. If you wanted to, you could speak to us without speech." 

Ban grudgingly marveled at how perceptive the blind man was. 

Yamato laughed. "Very good, Kakei-san." A shadow crossed his face. "Considering I'm a ghost, that's a very accurate description." 

"Ah." Juubei didn't seem surprised. 

"Yamato," Ban finally growled out, worry in his tone. "Where's…what happened to Himiko?" 

Yamato stopped, and peered forward. "Wait." He continued observing, then whistled. "This is a pretty mess." 

"Yamato." Ban was getting impatient. Then another thought struck him. "What do you mean this is a back alley?" 

Yamato sighed, while still looking at what was in front of him. "Himiko's not lost, Ban," he said calmly. "Don't worry." 

Ban was quick to retaliate, albeit with useless denial. "I wasn't…" 

"Luckily, her previous trial wasn't timed, unlike the one in your grandmother's library. _Un_luckily, she didn't finish it in the three hours until the next trial. So this trial is going to overlap with her first." A slight frown furrowed his brow. "We're in a back alley that leads from dimension to dimension...usually only us dead ones use these. Had you pushed through with the magic transport you were preparing for you and Kakei, you would have gotten…well, seriously mangled in the turbulence that's happening on the way to each dimension because of my sister's trial. So, I took you this way." He turned to Ban and Juubei. "The problem is this. Himiko is currently between dimensions, not really in one and not really in the other. She can only completely stay in one dimension if she finishes one of the trials. Because she's not really anywhere, she will be hard to catch…it will take complicated magic and power to stay with her. Kazuki, on the other hand, because he is not of the witches, is stuck in one dimension." 

"So they're separated and lost," Ban finished. 

The ghost nodded. "Essentially, yes." 

"I can follow Himiko," Ban said slowly. "But thread spool…" 

"I'll go after him," Juubei spoke up. Of course. 

Ban glared at him. "You're blind." 

"Has that stopped me before?" 

"I'm not letting you run around _blind_ in a world full of magic traps. Hell, you can't even _sense_ magic." 

"You need to go after Himiko-san. I'm not going to leave Kazuki." Juubei pointed out. "What else can we do?" 

Ban fell silent, then shot a sharp glance at Yamato. "I'm guessing you're not allowed to help Himiko out." 

An irritated look passed over the ghost's face. "No." 

"If you help thread spool, will that be counted as helping her?" 

Yamato shook his head. "I don't think so." He raised an eyebrow at the other. "What are you thinking of?" 

"Go with Juubei. When the two of you find thread spool, you bring both of them to wherever Himiko and I are. I'll take it from there." 

"I might be seen," Yamato said slowly. "They might use it against me." 

"Possess him, then." 

"What!" Needles sprang out of Juubei's fists. 

"He's not a vengeful spirit," Ban jerked a thumb at the ghost. "He's not going to get you into trouble. In fact, I think he can be your eyes. Right?" 

Yamato tilted his head. "I'm not sure it can be done." 

**……**

Wearily, she shook her head and felt her awareness come back to her. 

Yet as she felt herself awaken, there seemed to be others, whispering to her… 

_Himiko._ Like the rustling of dead leaves, and as flat as a black hole. _Himiko._

"Go away," she said thickly, trying not to fall into blackness. She was flat on rocky ground, facedown, bruised and aching. 

Give up, Himiko. Surrender yourself to us. 

"No!" She could feel her will slipping, feel her body grow further from her as others tried to take over. "Go AWAY!" 

Why do you reject us so much, Himiko? Male, female, soft, entreating. _We have waited, waited so long…your brother is dead. What do you have left? _

She tried to shove the voices out of her mind, felt her breath coming ragged and harsh as she pushed herself to her knees, slowly. Sweat trickled down her face. "Ban…" His face entered her mind, his eyes worried, tense. "Ban…would be angry," she gasped out. "Aniki…doesn't want me to. There are people…" She cried out as a violent thrust to her mind caused her to lose control, and she fell again. "My friends…in the Birthplace…if I turn evil, they'll die…" 

You're ours, Himiko. 

She felt them stealing into her…Laboriously, she made her hand move, with the last of her will…made it reach for her knife…unsheathed the blade… 

"Stop," an annoyed voice said, and the whispering vanished. She gasped as she felt her body come back under her control, and the knife fell from her nerveless hands. A rustling of cloth…the judge. "She hasn't lost a trial yet. You know that. Until then, none of you can touch her." 

There was a rush of coldness, and Himiko raised her head to see the retreating backs of several ghosts. Recalling Ban's warning, she shuddered. 

She tensed as her knife suddenly rose, but it was only held hilt towards her, in offering. Warily, she took it, and she sensed the judge smile. "There is no need to take your own life, Miss Himiko." 

"Where's Kazuki?" the girl asked immediately, worry springing up within her. 

"He's fine. Alive, and fine." 

_"Where is he?" _

"That I cannot answer, Miss Himiko. You'll have to look for him." 

"I haven't failed?" she asked. 

"Not yet." Far from consoling, but… "You have yet to pass the Maze; as that trial was not timed, you have not failed it. However, as the third hour is over, you must begin on your next trial." 

"But how…oh. They'll overlap?" She remembered faintly what Ban, Amaya, and Shinya had discussed…only twelve hours ago? 

"Correct." The judge seemed pleased. "To pass this trial, you must both complete the Maze and…survive whatever is thrown at you in the next three hours." 

Himiko scowled. "That's not very helpful." 

"Trust me, Miss Himiko, it is." Then he was gone. 

Sighing, Himiko took a step forward, and was startled when the world around her began to melt. 

**……**

"Aesclepius," Paul spoke up from where he was sitting. 

Ginji could almost feel the tension in the snake, the cold coiled thirst for blood and for death. He shuddered at this, remembering Akabane for a fleeting moment, watching as the spirit turned, acknowledging Paul's voice. 

"Do you know what happened to them?" 

It had been preying on their minds now, for the past ten minutes…After Ban, Yamato, and Juubei had disappeared, things had subsided to a heavy stillness, with the moaning and chanting of the creatures in the background. The silence of the group within the barrier was only broken by the occasional hissing flares of the barrier itself. 

Aesclepius turned away. "Ban hasn't said anything yet." 

A ghost idiotically charged at the barricade, and screamed as it was devoured. Natsumi made a small sound and put her hand to her mouth; Ginji put a protective arm around her shoulders and gave her a small, reassuring smile. 

Emishi sighed. "Why do we have to be the ones to get stuck in a small space with a bloodthirsty, powerful snake spi…" 

"Shut up," Shido advised him. 

There was a soft, _wooshing_ sound, and HEVN turned abruptly. "Guys…a few more ghosts just appeared. I think they're telling the others something." 

All heads turned in the direction she was pointing. Indeed, several spirits were floating above the mass of enemies, and from what they could see, the ghosts were pissed. 

Aesclepius suddenly hissed in relief. "She's all right." 

Smiles broke over everyone's face, and the tension in the air eased a little. "Himiko-chan passed?" Ginji asked. 

Aesclepius shook his head, eyes glazed as if listening to something far away. "Not yet. Her previous trial and the next one will overlap, for the meantime." 

"Huh?" several voices chorused. 

"Oh," Ginji slapped his forehead with his palm. "I forgot that part…" 

HEVN sighed. "Gin-chan, what's going…" 

A sudden tremor shook the snake's body, and warily, Ginji and Shido stood. "Aesclepius…" 

The spirit's voice came out in a gasp; the shields flickered a darker red. "I'll be…fine… bloodlust…" 

"Emishi." The Joker straightened at Shido's call. The Beastmaster jerked his head to the other side of the barrier. "Stay there with the others. Be prepared for whatever happens." 

As the other man hastened to follow, Ginji and Shido stepped forward, ready to deal with the snake. 

**……**

Ban slipped through time and space and movement, in the final stage before getting to where Himiko was. 

A rustle of wind and cloth swept past him, then stopped. "Midou Ban." 

Warily, the man turned, and then he recognized the aura. "Oh. It's you." 

"What a pleasant surprise," the judge drawled coolly. "On your way to Miss Himiko, I presume?" 

"Where is she, what's happened to her, and what's going to happen next?" Ban eyed the space where the judge supposedly was, and asked suspiciously, "And do I know you?" 

There was a chuckle. "What makes you think that?" 

"Call it instinct." Had Aesclepius been in Ban's arm, the snake would have known. The spirit could see things the man couldn't, but as he was currently in the Birthplace and hopefully not losing it… 

"Perhaps. You'd better hurry up, before she gets away." 

Ban snarled out something rude, then continued onwards, speeding his pace. 

The judge continued on his way, too. "Best of luck…Midou." 

**……**

He awoke to the trembling of the earth beneath him. 

He ached all over, and winced as he tried to stand. He was on soft grass, though exactly where he didn't know… 

Wait. How'd he end up _outside_ the maze? 

Kazuki stiffened when he saw the roiling, stormy mass over the green walls. And Himiko was nowhere in sight. 

Did she fail or did she pass? 

Only one way to find out… 

Heedless of the danger, conscious only of his worry for the girl, Kazuki ran back into the maze, and straight into what seemed like a terrible storm… 

**……**

This was too strange. 

Himiko cursed as she slipped on something she could barely see, for the nth time. Rain drenched her clothing and chilled her to the bone; thunder and lightning crackled powerfully overhead. She was caught in a place neither real nor unreal…It was strange how the scenery kept shifting. She could see, nearly clearly, the green walls of the maze, and the crater the lightning that had barely missed her and Kazuki had caused, yet at the same time there was another landscape, forever eluding her…a dark, rocky underground place, cold and blue and deadly strange. Gnarled trees seemed to inhabit the place, and still, chill pools of ice. This was the place she seemed to be touching, in spite of the other world being clearer. 

As she stepped near the crater, she noticed that there was no sign of a charred demon corpse… 

There was a crashing sound, and it broke through the hedge in front and slightly to the right of her. Startled, she leapt backwards, unsheathing her knives. _I thought we killed it! _

The demon turned to her, licked its lips, and advanced, slowly. 

Himiko sped forward, attacking with her knives. She gasped as the demon dodged easily, and swung towards her with a clawed hand. Ducking out of the way, she slashed with a blade… 

The steel passed harmlessly through its skin, and at the same time, she felt a strange no-feeling as another claw went right through her body. 

_What the…? _

Backing away, she stared. Was it a ghost? Or was she… 

The demon seemed equally flabbergasted. But suddenly, its face stretched into a hideous grin. It took a step forward, then another… 

Himiko gulped as the air before it rippled, and it suddenly seemed a lot more solid. 

_Oh crap. _

**……**

Rain slicked his hair flat against his head, streaming in rivulets down his glasses. Startled by the sudden downpour, Ban cursed, took the lenses off, wiped them and… _What the…! Himiko's next trial is in Hades! _

He didn't seem to be mistaken. Though he had never been here before, the gloomy, bare landscape definitely had the same air his grandmother would have when she would come back home from visiting this place. She was on good terms with Pluto, and many other people down here, it seemed. 

Oddly enough, no one was around. The only disturbance was the strange rain, pouring on endlessly… 

_Himiko, where the hell are you? _

**……**

Fighting the thing was hard. But then again, she hadn't expected any of the trials to be easy. 

Her clothing had more rips already, and she had gained a few more wounds. But she was still standing, and holding on her own pretty well… 

The demon was intelligent. It didn't randomly attack, but sat back and calculated, watching her every move with golden, cat-like eyes. 

Suddenly it rammed forward with surprising speed…barely leaping aside, she plunged both knives down and was rewarded with its cry of pain. Yet it was not a killing blow. The creature twisted and leapt, slashing downwards, and she sidestepped neatly, managing to lop off one of its hands. It screamed, she leapt backwards as it swung its tail forwards… 

Her heart nearly stopped as someone materialized between her and the demon. "There you…" 

"BAN! LOOK OUT!" 

Instinctively he ducked and flung up a shield, several curses slipping out of his mouth. The tail crashed into the blue field, sending him sprawling. 

"Ban!" She darted forward, saw an opening… 

In moments, there was a knife in the demon's eye, and it reeled backwards, howling. 

She bit her lip as its wildly flailing tail caught her in the leg, and ignored Ban's yell. Jumping forward, she slipped under the demon's guard and cut off its head in one strong, fell stroke. 

Unfortunately, the body topped forward on top of her. 

"Ack!" 

"Himiko!" 

The demon gave one final twitch, then lay still. 

Black blood was warm all over her face, and she retched. The weight of the body was suddenly moved, and then gentle hands were pulling her into a sitting position. Relief surged through her, and she felt an unexpected spurt of gladness, at seeing him. "Ban…" she vomited again. 

"Gak. Not all over yourself, idiot." There was a ripping noise, and a piece of rain soaked-cloth was wiping her face clean. "That's disgusting." 

"The blood doesn't taste very good," she snapped back weakly. 

There was a grin on Ban's face, framed by long, wet strands of hair, then it swiftly turned to consternation. "You had me…all of us worried, baka. What the hell happened?" 

"We ran out of time," Himiko said, by way of explanation. "I think it's because Kazuki made me sleep for nearly an hour." 

Ban sighed. "Well, you needed it." He was kneeling beside her, and he cocked his head at her curiously. "I hope you weren't using Acceleration poison to defeat that thing?" 

"I don't have my poisons," she said softly. 

"What!" 

She sighed. "It's part of the previous trial. I'm supposed to finish this maze, and my poisons are at the center." 

"Then on to the next trial." Ban eyed her speculatively. "You're pretty beat up." He passed a hand over a few wounds, and she watched, amazed as blue light danced on the cuts, healing them. "But you did well, without the poisons. You didn't use magic?" His voice was suddenly sharp. 

She shook her head weakly. "I don't think so…" A shiver ran through her. "It's cold." As if in agreement to what she just said, lightning flashed bright and thunder rumbled. The downpour didn't worsen, but it didn't slacken, either. 

Ban laid both hands on her shoulders. "Hold still." 

Himiko felt his magic pulse once, before a soft, spreading warmth filled her body. Her shivering stopped, and a tiny, grateful smile touched her mouth. "Arigato." She looked at him. "How did you get here?" 

"Your brother showed me the way," Ban said in a suddenly low voice. 

"Ani—" 

Ban's hand clapped over her mouth, stifling her cry. "Ssh. Not so loud." 

She nodded, and he released her. "He helped," he said quietly. "He's helping the samurai look for thread spool now." 

"Is Kazuki all right?" 

Ban ducked his head. "I don't know." He stood, offering her a hand. "Let's finish the first trial, so we'll get on to the next." 

As she took his hand and pulled herself up, magic rippled over them, and the world warped… 

But nothing else happened. 

Ban cursed. "We have a problem." 

**……**

Kazuki stumbled and barely managed to support himself, leaning heavily on the wall. Red blood seeped through his shirt as a clotted wound re-opened. In vain, he strained his ears for sounds from the strings he'd just sent out. He was pretty sure he'd made them cover the length and breadth of the first maze, and they caught no sign of Himiko. 

He looked up, unsettled by the strangeness of the elements. He could see the rain, see the flash of lightning, feel the slightest of vibrations that might have been thunder. But he was not getting wet, and the ground wasn't, either. As if the rain were pouring down on another place entirely… 

There was a sudden sniffling sound behind him. Startled, he looked back, to find something that looked like a gigantic armadillo turning the corner and staring straight at him. 

A gigantic armadillo with _fangs._

It squealed, a high, ear-splitting sound, and Kazuki winced. He hastily wove a mesh of steel threads in front of him as it charged… 

It fell dead, pierced through the eye and a couple of vital spots by several needles. 

Kazuki gasped and suddenly felt someone else supporting him, making him sit. "You look like hell, Kazuki." 

"Juubei!" the man looked up at his friend, and was shocked to see that the blind man was apparently looking straight at him. "What are you doing here? Wait…you can see?" 

The needles flew back into the doctor's hands, and he immediately began treating the other. "Well…In a sense, yes. Thanks to Himiko-san's oniisan." The last part was said in a low, barely discernible whisper. 

For a flicker of time, Kazuki saw another man slip apart from Juubei, winking at him before slipping back in. The specter seemed to resemble Himiko, yet at the same time was like Ban. 

He understood the request not to react, and instead he asked Juubei, "How will we get out?" 

_I've got that covered_, a voice came softly into his head. 

"You heard him," Juubei murmured. "We're going to try to meet up with Midou-san and Himiko-san, as soon as possible." 

**……**

In the Birthplace, things were not going well. 

Paul and Emishi jerked the supplies away from the wall as it thrashed once, almost mimicking the snake's movements. Natsumi and HEVN were told to stay in the center of the circle, and Shido and Ginji were frantically trying to calm the rabid snake spirit down. 

Aesclepius, apparently, wasn't listening. 

He was hissing violently, transparent flecks of poison flying from his mouth. Ginji had to vaporize some with his electricity, and Shido was hissing, too, trying to make himself heard. 

He was remembering several times, when Ban attacked others unintentionally, because of the snake's thirst for blood… 

"Aesclepius!" Ginji slammed his hand onto the snake's scales, releasing a huge burst of electricity. The snake's tail knocked him flying, and the others cried out in alarm. Unhurt, Ginji leapt to his feet, and froze when giant golden eyes turned towards him. 

"Ginji," the snake hissed. "I need to get out." 

The man stared at him. "What…" 

"Will the shield hold?" Shido asked roughly, drawing the snake's attention back to him. 

"I…think so…" Blood-red mist formed around the snake, nearly causing the humans to choke. The ghosts outside were backing away, frightened. 

"Aesclepius…" Ginji was unsure, unable to decide. He didn't know what would happen, if he let the snake loose… 

"Go," Shido snapped, throwing his will to support the snake's. "But if you cause too much trouble, we'll have to stop you." 

The snake paid no heed, already through the barrier and striking quicker than lightning. 

Screams and wails echoed outside, and the creatures tried to escape. Though undead, they could feel some semblance of pain, especially since it was a spirit attacking them. Spectral blood spurted here and there, some entities fought back, as the snake spat unholy anger. 

HEVN gulped and closed her eyes, and Natsumi felt sick at the massacre. 

Ginji and Shido whipped around in alarm at Emishi's cry: To their horror, they saw that the circle of acid blood-magic was beginning to tighten… 

**……**

Ban easily knocked aside another gnome trying to scratch at them. 

"Poor thing." Himiko's eyes followed the trajectory of the flying creature, until it was lost in the rain. 

Lightning set a not-solid tree ablaze, and the two winced at the loud report of thunder that followed. 

"Ban…can you tell me again what that other land is?" 

He sighed. "It's _Hades_, Himiko," he said for the third time. "Believe it or not, the witches apparently decided to be even more sadistic and splat you into the middle of the Underworld. We're lucky we haven't met anything yet." 

She glanced at him sideways. "Have you ever been here…there?" 

He shook his head backwards, flipping the hair out of his eyes. "No. The obaasan has." He sighed and took off his shades. "Have you got a dry spot on you?" 

It was her turn to shake her head. "The rain's got every part of me wet." She watched as he tried to wipe them with a sopping wet shirttail. The other was ripped off; he'd used it to wipe her clean of the vomit. "You know, at least there's no wind. It isn't that cold…" 

Immediately, a chill blast caused her to stagger, then to shiver, and the man beside her groaned. "Don't do things like that," he said, as the wind caused the leaves of the hedges to fly in every which way. 

"I didn't know that would happen," she protested hotly. 

"You can never tell, with those ancestors of yours," the other grumbled. He stopped, then, and lifted his head. "I think…this way." 

She faced the direction he was pointing, sniffed a while, then nodded. "Yes, I think that's my perfume…" 

He suddenly put a hand over her mouth, and she looked at him, surprised. He was looking warily in another direction…Grabbing her arm he hauled both of them into the way they'd chosen, motioning her to stay flat against the hedge without falling through. "Something's coming." 

They strained their ears over the ceaseless noise of the rain and the crackling of thunder and lightning…Ban caught the sound of two voices murmuring. Someone gasped and seemed to stumble, and there was the faint tinkling of bells… 

He looked carefully around the corner to see Kazuki and Juubei. 

Himiko had seen them, too. Softly, she called out their names. 

The two men looked up, and for a moment she saw her brother, too, waving merrily from behind Juubei, before disappearing back into him. She kept silent. 

Kazuki, on the other hand, had pure relief on his face. "Himiko-san!" 

Ban shoved his glasses up his nose. "Oi, thread spool, samurai. You all right?" 

"Hai," Juubei answered. He stopped, cocked his head, and Ban knew Yamato was telling Juubei something. 

Sure enough, Juubei spoke slowly after a minute. "Why aren't you…in this world?" To him and to Kazuki, Himiko and Ban were transparent: the hedges could be seen through them. 

Ban jerked his head at Himiko. "She can't get out from this in-between place. I'm guessing it's going to be that way until she completes at least one of her trials." 

"How is she going to do it if she's stuck there?" Kazuki asked. 

"We'll complete the maze trial first," Ban said, gesturing at the green walls around them. "We're trying to find the center, but we can't really smell her tracking perfume." 

"I'll help." Kazuki leapt to the top of the hedge, and Himiko looked worriedly after him. "Kazuki, don't strain yourself…" 

"Thread spool, get down…" 

"There!" Kazuki pointed in the direction they'd picked. "You're going the right way." 

That was when the dead attacked. 

Out of nowhere, a horde of spirits rushed at them, and Himiko screamed. Ban gestured sharply and shouted something German, and a shield of blue flame shot up around them. 

But Kazuki and Juubei could only see the two of them. 

"Midou-san? Himiko-san? What's wrong?" Kazuki leapt down from the wall, brow furrowed. 

Himiko shouted, "Ban!" and shoved him to the ground, ducking her head...the man thrust his arm upwards. Something seemed to writhe in his clenched fist for a while, before there was a faint scream and a dull flash. In his mind, Juubei suddenly felt Yamato curse, before there was a ghostly howl and a skeletal figure appeared, hovering on top of Ban and Himiko. Blue fire touched it, and it disintegrated, shrieking. 

"Midou! Himiko!" 

"Use your knives! They're spelled to handle these things!" Ban yelled at Himiko, before twisting around to deal with another specter. She barely had time to raise her weapons in defense as the ghost of a beast leapt through Ban's shield and straight at her. 

_Now_ Kazuki and Juubei could see. But when they tried to help, their weapons passed right through them. 

_It won't work, you're not in their dimension!_ Yamato yelled into their minds. 

Ban turned. "Thread spool, samurai, listen. You two go ahead and find the center of the maze, while we get out of this mess. You," he pointed at Kazuki. "Leave some thread behind so we can follow, and wait for us there." He jerked as a spirit came flying at him, and flung it aside with a powerful thrust of his arm. "Go! Now!" 

The two nodded, and ran. 

**……**

"Aesclepius!" Ginji resisted the urge to beat on the barrier. "Aesclepius!" 

Shido was speaking now, in a language none could understand. The Beastmaster tried to pinpoint the snake's mind and will. But a spirit is different from a flesh-and-blood creature. 

The barrier was bathing them all in blood-red light…already, the circle was only seven feet in diameter. 

"They're not stopping!" HEVN cried. 

"Aesclepius, come here and stop the barrier!" Emishi shouted in vain. 

Shido cursed, frustrated. "He's not listening!" 

He didn't notice Ginji bow his head, for a while, and whisper something that sounded like an apology. 

The Beastmaster turned when the Thunder Emperor left his side in a burst of inhuman speed. 

"GINJI!" 

The man's hands slammed into the barrier, sending out two gigantic shocks…one into the shield, and one into the ground of the Birthplace towards the rampaging snake. 

There was a blast of blue-white energy, and an agonized scream. 

**……**

Ban's head jerked up. "Ginji!" 

Himiko leapt to cover his back, stabbing a demon about to skewer him. "What happened?" she asked anxiously. 

"The idiot…" His eyes focused on something, and he pulled Himiko forward. "There! Go!" 

She saw the gap in the mass of the dead, and the faint glitter of string threading through the maze. "Ban, what happened to…" 

"Run!" He pushed her into the passage and followed, weaving a barrier of protective spells after them. The ghosts leapt back from the flare of magic, bright and neon in the pelting rain. 

"What happened to Ginji?" she insisted as they ran, following the path the string marked out. 

His blue eyes were shadowed and worried, and he let loose a soft string of expletives before answering, "He nearly got himself killed." 

Her eyes widened. "Is he all right?" 

He nodded, and she sensed a passing of magic. "What did you do?" 

"Sent magic to help Aesclepius heal him." Ban pinched the bridge of his nose, brow furrowing. "His stupid bloodlust…" 

Suddenly, something crackled faintly at the edge of his consciousness, and he instinctively grabbed Himiko. She let out a startled cry as they moved with impossible speed… 

There was a searing crack, and a crater of burnt rock was in the place they'd been in seconds ago. 

Thunder rumbled, and the wind whipped the rain into their faces. 

"The lightning…" Himiko whispered. 

Ban looked up. "It's beginning to aim for us." He pulled them onwards again. "Hurry up." 

**……**

Shinya's hands twisted, her face made uglier by her anger. "Amaya, she's succeeding." 

"She won't for long," her sister said, staring at the pane of glass they were scyring in. 

Black flame wreathed the hag's head. "She has a _chance_. You know it. She isn't supposed to have any at all." 

The sorceress looked up sharply, her mind picking up on her sister's thoughts. "Are you suggesting…?" 

Shinya nodded roughly, hands still clenched. "It's time we asked his help. Quick, before they're fully in his realm. 

"She must not live beyond this day." 

**……**

Finally, they reached the center of the maze. 

Himiko gasped with relief when she smelled fully her perfumes, all of them, set on a high pedestal at the center of the maze. Miraculously, the pedestal and poisons were in the same in-between place she and Ban were in. She'd be able to touch them… 

She was horrified when she saw Kazuki and Juubei out cold, lying a few feet away. 

Ban followed quickly as she ran to them, forgetting about her poisons. "Kazuki! Juubei!" the girl cried. 

_There was a barrier around the pedestal, Only Himiko can get through_, Yamato spoke into Ban's mind. _The magic got them. Can you heal them? _

"Himiko, get your poisons already," Ban crouched down, laying a hand on the foreheads of the two unconscious men. "We're running out of time." 

Seeing the blue sparks of healing again, she nodded and clambered quickly onto the pedestal. 

As she gathered the poisons and strapped them back onto herself, she felt a strange, electric prickling. 

_That feels like…_

She leapt off the pedestal, barreling into Ban as another bolt of lightning ripped the pedestal asunder. 

"Gah!" 

"That was too close," the man snapped, cursing the witches as the ground began to rumble. He stretched out his hands again… 

To find that they passed right through Kazuki and Juubei's heads. 

"Ban!" 

He cursed again, spread his hands, and blue sparks flashed out and faded, sinking into them. _Yamato! _

What? 

She passed. The dimensions are splitting apart now. I don't want to drag these two around Hades, not while they're injured. When they wake up, bring them to where we are at the end of the third hour. Will you be able to locate us? 

I think so. 

You'd better. "Himiko, let's go. They'll be safe here," Ban grabbed Himiko's arm and ignored her protests, muttering something. This time, the rippling encompassed both of them, and they felt the strange queasy feeling of magical transport… 

**……**

Natsumi cradled Ginji's head in her lap, her eyes showing traces of tears. In the first frantic moments when they'd thought Ginji was dead, Shido had jerked Aesclepius back out of sheer anger. It hadn't taken much to get the snake to snap out of it; he'd sensed Ginji's pain, too. 

Right now, Aesclepius's head was hovering over Ginji, crystalline liquid dripping from his fangs. Apparently the spirit didn't only have venom: he had an almost elixir-like secretion, too. The snake's magic shimmered around Ginji, stabilizing him and bringing him back. Ban's magic had strengthened it some, and the bit of himself he had sent with it was mainly what kept Ginji hanging on. 

"Will he be all right?" Natsumi whispered to the snake. 

The snake nodded, and in his golden eyes she could see the barest hint of emotions…of guilt, worry, and relief. "Idiot boy. He shouldn't have messed with the barrier…" 

"Well if YOU had listened…" Emishi began. 

Surprisingly, it was Shido who stopped him. "It was his bloodlust. No animal can be held accountable for what he does, once his instincts take over." 

HEVN's face was tear-streaked, too, and she was hugging herself tightly, praying that Ginji would be all right. Paul was on the lookout, gun at ready, staring at the spirits outside the newly-widened, no longer acidic barrier, but his head turned often to look at the young man on the ground. 

"Is your bloodlust still up?" Shido asked the snake calmly. 

The snake's eyes met his, for a moment, then flicked away, as if ashamed. "No." 

"Good." 

Just then, the magic around Ginji pulsed red once, and everyone tensed, wondering if this was a good sign. There was a moment of breathless waiting…and then Ginji stirred, opening one eye. 

"Ginji!" several voices chorused, and Natsumi's hands tightened on his shoulders. 

He smiled up at her, then at the others, before turning his gaze on Aesclepius. "Aesclepius?" 

The snake couldn't meet his eyes, either. "I'm sorry, Ginji…" 

"It's not your fault." Slowly, he sat up, the girl beside him supporting him. He grinned at the spirit, and a flicker of pleasure seemed to cross the snake's face. Then Ginji's expression turned into worry. 

"I just hope Ban-chan won't get mad at me." 

**

...

**

The world of Hades solidified around them. It was still raining. 

Himiko rounded on Ban. "Why did you leave them!" 

His grip on her arm tightened, warning her to keep silent. "Your brother will bring them where we are as soon as this trial's done," he said quietly, so that only she could hear. "It's safer that way." 

She relaxed. "Oh." As he let go of her arm, she muttered, "Sorry." 

"Hm." Ban looked around at the cold, dead scenery. "Well, we're here in Hades. Did the judge tell you what you're supposed to—mmph!" 

Himiko's hand was clamped firmly over his nose and mouth, and his eyes widened when he caught the faintest trace of flame poison in the air… 

There was a soft, chilling chuckle. "Nice try, Voodoo Child," a male voice said, in strangely-accented Japanese. A figure appeared, tall, dark, and abnormally thin, with a wreath of smoky material around it, like robes. Immense power surrounded it; a forceful, unpredictable aura. They could see nothing of the features, but Himiko felt Ban stiffen beside her. He pulled her hand off her mouth, eyes gleaming warily. "Pluto." 

To Himiko's shock—or more of surprise—a thin trail of flame issued from where she supposed the being's mouth was—the poison had not affected it at all. For a moment there was a strange, blue-white glow of unnatural eyes. 

"Ban." The non-accent was more pronounced this time, and the voice held suppressed, unfathomable power. "I haven't seen you since…oh, you were no more than knee-high?" 

Ban grimaced. "Shut up." 

An eerie gleam, and Himiko had the faintest impression that Pluto had, for a moment, smiled. "You've grown as arrogant as your grandmother, Ban." There was a regretful sigh. "As close as I am to her, I cannot make allowances for her favorite grandson this time." 

"I'm her _only_ grandson." 

"That's actually a good thing," Pluto said smoothly. "I was told to challenge the Voodoo Child. As you are with her, I'm assuming it means I challenge you, too." 

Ban smirked, and Himiko marveled at how he was so confident, even if he was wary. How he could be so cocky in front of such a being. "I can take whatever you throw at me." 

The blue-white eyes flashed again. "You haven't changed." Wreaths of smoke and dark flame began to swirl around the being. "Very well, Ban, Himiko. This is what you must do. 

"Firstly, you must get out of Hades." The shadows around him shifted, and again Himiko sensed the eerie gleam of a smile. "As Ban most probably knows, all you have to do is follow the River." 

"What Ri—" 

"Secondly," Pluto continued, cutting across Himiko's question. "You must take whatever comes your way. Things will attack you, here, and they are not prompted by my will. You must defeat them. 

"Thirdly,"—here, Pluto's voice held a delighted, sadistic undertone. "If you get to the exit, and if you live through whatever tries to get you, you must defeat my pet." 

"Cerberus," Ban growled. 

Pluto chuckled softly. "I trust the snake that lives in your arm is well acquainted with him? Oh, wait, I forgot…he's not there, right now." 

Ban said nothing. 

The ice-blue-white turned to Himiko, and the gleaming smile grew wider. "Voodoo Child, so many things are within your grasp. And so much depends on you." 

Himiko met the gaze, and shuddered. 

Slowly, a dark tendril lifted…a hand, and the entity gave a sort of wave. 

Then Pluto was gone. 

**

...

**

"I never liked him," Ban commented, looking around again at Hades. 

"I thought you'd never been here." He didn't notice that her voice was listless, without her usual snap. Pluto had reminded her of something, something she'd been thinking over in her mind... 

"I haven't. He used to visit, sometimes. Scared the hell out of some guests, once. Found it funny." Ban cocked his head. "Do you hear the River?" 

Thunder crashed, lightning rumbled and Himiko grimaced. "Over all this noise? The rain's pouring down so hard, I wouldn't be able to distinguish any other sound of water." She looked curiously around. "There's a river here?" 

Ban rolled his eyes. "You don't remember." 

She glared at him, her dark thoughts vanishing in her irritation, and he snorted. "Come on, Himiko, you asked me to tell you myths when you were a kid. Can't you remember the one on Hades?" 

She bit back her retort, and concentrated. In a while, she got it. 

"It's the River…Styx, isn't it? The river which the dead cross?" Himiko squinted. "Which region are we in, Erebus, or Tartarus?" 

Ban smirked. "You remember more than I thought." At her irritated retort, he grinned. "Can you remember exactly what they were?" 

"Ban, this is not time for a mythology test." 

"Tsk tsk. Erebus is where the dead enter first. Tartarus is where the Titans are imprisoned." 

"So _where are we?_" 

He shrugged. "If we run into Titans, we'll find out." He listened again, then set off in a certain direction. "I think it's this way. Can you let out your tracking perfume, so that we know if we're walking in circles?" 

Himiko sighed and hurried after him, deeper into the rain. ** **

...… 

Kazuki awoke to silence. Raising his head, he looked around, to catch sight of Juubei, still out cold beside him, and another man, seated silently, watching. 

Yamato. 

"Kudo-san…?" 

The ghost shook his head. "We have to wait. Here." 

Kazuki bowed his head. _Good luck, Himiko-san. _

**

……

**

"Does that answer your question, Himiko?" Ban gestured to the large, covered pit, barred and locked by countless spells and chains. It was situated near the Styx, which stretched as far as the eye could see. The water rushed rapidly, deep, and black, clearly heard if there was no thunder. 

Himiko gazed at the River and the prison of the Titans, and far below they could hear enraged, furious roars, echoing beneath the ground. But her eyes did not seem to see anything. 

Ban looked at her, a strange feeling of unease growing in him. "Oi. Himiko." 

She didn't look up at him. "Ban," she said softly, barely heard over all the noise. 

He tilted his head down at her, peering at her sharply from under brown, wet bangs. "What?" 

Rain trickled over her hair and streamed down her face…oddly, none touched the star that stood out on her cheek. "You told me what will happen if I get my curse." 

He kept silent, watching her warily. 

"I saw what happened to aniki." 

"What's your point?" His voice came out, not snappish or sharp, but soft, and forbidding. 

She took a deep breath. In her mind, she could feel the presences of her ancestors, watching, waiting, gloating. She remembered what it was like, when the ghosts from earlier had almost taken her. And she remembered a strange feeling of evil, stealing over her mind and taking over her body… 

"Ban, if I fail…" She looked up at his protest, and he was silenced by the look in her eyes. "I want you to kill me." 

His eyes widened, then narrowed, flashing dangerously. "What?" 

"I want you to kill me if anything goes wrong." Her face was determined, set. "If anything happens…" 

"No." Ban was angry, ice-cold-hot fear in him. _No, I can't kill you_… "Nothing will happen. You _have_ to pass." 

"I know I have to, but…" 

"Himiko, shut up. Let's go." 

"Ban!" She grabbed his shoulders, forcing him to stay and listen. Violet eyes glared up at him angrily. "I don't want to fail. I don't want to die." She swallowed, and looked down, and his angry expression softened the slightest bit when he felt her hands tremble. "But I don't want to become…whatever I may become. I don't want to become evil." 

"Himiko…" 

"If you let me live, who will I attack?" Her voice was deadly now, angry and frightened. "You? Kazuki? Juubei? Ginji?" Her hands slid off his shoulders, clenching into fists. "Everyone is in danger. You can't let me wander the dimensions, at the beck and call of Amaya and Shinya! I'll be a killing machine. A tool. I won't even be _me_. My body will be at the control of thousands of other beings, not me. You will have to kill me anyway." She finished in a whisper. 

Ban said nothing, but she could hear him breathing harshly, could see that his hands were also clenched, at his sides. 

"Ban?" 

"If I don't, what will you do?" Defiant, cold, enraged. 

Her eyes hardened. "Whatever little bit of me is left will be concentrated on pulling out my puppet perfume." 

A sharp intake of breath, an angry outburst. "Himi—" 

"Please." Softly, still looking down, unable to meet his eyes. "Promise…me." 

There was a silence. She felt a hand touch her face, tuck her wet hair behind her ear and tilt her face upwards. Startled at this gesture, she looked full into Ban's face. He let out a breath. "You're serious." 

She nodded. 

His hand dropped, and he turned away. "Let's go." 

"Ban…look out!" 

She knocked him aside as a spirit reared out of the river and struck at him. It disintegrated in a ball of blue magic. 

Startled, she turned to see Ban glaring at her, and she stepped back at the expression in his eyes. He stood abruptly and shoved up his glasses, hiding behind them. "Himiko, let's go. Now." 

Her request had upset him more than she realized. 

**…… **

"How long has it been?" HEVN's question broke through the silence, startling a few, but echoing their thoughts. 

Aesclepius answered. "Half their time is gone." 

"Only half?" Natsumi looked up. The snake was all that was between them and the ghosts: his shield had fallen when Ginji had attacked it. "It seems like all three have passed." 

"Time can play many tricks," Paul said softly. He didn't know how ironic his statement was. 

Ginji was silent, eyes focused on the floor. _Ban-chan,_ he thought quietly. _Where are you? Are you—you, Himiko-chan, Kazu-chan, and Juubei all right? _

"I hate waiting," Emishi said. 

**...**

Oddly enough, following the River Styx had been fairly easy. Fairly easy meaning, not many creatures attacked them. The River, on the other hand, had a mind of its own. Sometimes it disappeared, to reappear somewhere nearby, causing them to nearly lose their way. Sometimes it surged towards them, and they were forced to step back quickly as its deadly waters neared. Sometimes it seemed to chuckle evilly, watching, waiting for them to fall in so that it could carry them to the pits of hell. 

Always, it confused them, together with the wind, the rain, and the storm. 

Himiko leapt aside as riverwater splashed on the bank, hissing. She cursed. "Are you sure we have to follow the Styx to get out?" 

Ban did not look at her. "Just because it keeps moving doesn't mean it's not the way out." 

She silenced at his coldness. 

Suddenly, she spun, and lashed out with her knives and a spout of Flame poison. A great, winged harpy shrieked, its attack on her foiled. Ban turned at the sounds, and raced to help her. 

But when he arrived, the harpy was already dead. 

Himiko stood over the body, head bowed. As he came closer, she looked up, then hastily away. 

He sighed and nudged her gently. "Don't look so depressed. Come on." 

When she looked back up at him, he smiled, a little. 

**

...

**

Cerberus was one hell of a big monster. 

Himiko and Ban stared down at the sleeping hulk of the guard to Hades. They were high up on a ledge, and the river was running beneath them. Cerberus was huge enough to straddle the Styx, and its three heads were fanged and dangerous. Its dragon tail lashed even in its sleep, and both Himiko and Ban sensed the magical aura around it. 

"Damn, it's huge," Himiko whispered. 

Ban shoved up his glasses and peered closer. "What's that beside him?" 

Himiko looked closely, too, and was able to identify it before Ban did. "It's a skeleton." She stifled a surprised sound. "Ban…it's moving." 

Ban saw it, then. "It's looking up here." His eyes narrowed. "Charon!" 

"What?" 

The skeleton poked at Cerberus…and the beast awakened immediately. It spotted the two on the ledge above it, and growled. An aura of ice blue sprung up around it. 

"That…" Ban shook his head. "He was a busybody even when he was _alive_." 

Himiko stared. "You knew him?" 

"Obaasan told me." Ban leapt off the ledge. "Himiko, come on!" 

Himiko followed, and the battle began. 

**……**

Yamato paced impatiently. "Forty-five minutes left." 

Kazuki remembered the ill-fated countdown of the previous trial, and shuddered. Juubei calmed him with a touch to the shoulder, and turned to Yamato. "Can you tell what's happening?" 

"No." The ghost shook his head. "I can only hope they're all right." 

**...**

Charon disintegrated into a pile of ashes when Himiko poured her Corrosion poison over him. 

Ban almost snickered as he dodged Cerberus's huge paw. "Pluto won't like what you've done to his boatman." 

Himiko shrugged. "I don't care." She hit the ground and rolled, evading one of the heads. "How will we beat this thing?" 

Ban charged and hit Cerberus full on the side; the dog-monster howled with all its three heads, and flung him away. Ban crashed full tilt into a rocky wall. 

"Ban!" Himiko leapt out of the way and rushed to him. "Hey! Get up!" 

Ban shook his head groggily, to see her stooping anxiously over him. And behind her… "Idiot! Watch your back!" A shield sprung around them, and Cerberus sprang backwards, stung by the magic. 

"Are you all right?" 

Healing magic sparked over himself, and he nodded. "Aa." 

"Ban…I'll use Acceleration." 

His head snapped towards her. "No!" he snarled. 

She shook her head, eyes determined. "I have to. Judging from what I've seen…your magic can support me while I'm using it, right?" 

Ban cursed. _She's too sharp._ "Yes, but…" 

"No. I want to fight these thing, and I want to fight it the best I can. You can't fight it for me." 

Ban glared at her, and when she remained unmoved, he sighed and reluctantly agreed. 

**

...

**

_Thirteen minutes left. _

Himiko somersaulted over another swipe of the dragon-like tail, sipped a bit of Acceleration, and struck. Cerberus let out a roar of rage and barely dodged it, earning a corroded ear. 

Ban, striking from the other side, watched her worriedly. 

It was the fifth time she'd used the poison. 

Flame, Corrosion, Acceleration…she was tiring, requiring more of his supportive energy. They'd administer the antidote later, but now… 

She aimed her knife for one of Cerberus's eyes. As the beast dodged, it found the scent of Flame floating near its nose. Spitting out a gout of flame, it let out another angry bark. And then suddenly… 

Himiko gasped as she felt Acceleration wracking her insides, twisting them brutally. Beneath her, she heard Ban cry out involuntarily, as Cerberus attacked him with wild magic so that he was unable to shield her. 

The girl fell, mid-leap, and crashed to the ground, nearly unconscious. One of Cerberus's heads turned, towards her, raised itself to strike… 

She flung the knife into its eye. 

Its subsequent pain caused it to focus its magic on itself, and it released Ban. He rushed to the girl, lifting her up and shoving the antidote under her nose. "I told you this would happen!" He pumped magic into her, trying to get warmth back into her suddenly cold body. 

She fixed her eyes on him, seeing the franticness in his face. She smiled weakly. "It's my trial. I'm not letting you fight it for me." 

_Damn, why does she have to be so…her?_ "Himiko…" he began warningly. He was startled when she grabbed at his shirt, pulling herself up. 

"Have…to try…" Sweat beaded her forehead, and her eyes were glazing over. Ban's heart gave a jolt; she was dying. "One…last…time…" 

_It's a promise, Yamato. _

You can't die… 

"No." Ban kept her down, and she protested weakly. He glared at her, ice blue boring into purple. "It's your trial, yes. You cannot fail this." _I don't want to kill you._ "But you need help to finish it." 

"Don't…" 

"I'll make sure you do something." Blue-purple magic flared up around them…not a moment too soon, Ban erected a shield, and it shook as Cerberus charged at it. Himiko suddenly felt power flowing into her, as Ban infused more of his own magic in her, so she would live. She opened her mouth to protest again, but he shook his head. "I don't want you to die." 

She kept silent, at this. 

Ban closed his eyes and stood, and Himiko inhaled more of the antidote, while kneeling on the ground. Wearily, she watched him, and wondered what he was going to do. 

"Now from my right hand, unto thee. Until this cursed life ends…" 

**

...

**

Aesclepius's head jerked up. 

Ginji's did, too. "Aesclepius?" he whispered. 

The snake ignored him, and the queries of the others, too. He hissed something, and before they could react, was diving through the Birthplace, and disappearing. 

**...**

"The Serpent Bearer, descending from the high galaxy…" 

_Get your flame poison out._ Himiko's eyes widened when she heard Ban's voice in her head. She obeyed. 

"Hear my request." 

_On my signal, breathe fire. And throw the vial at Cerberus. _

Aesclepius was speeding frantically through time and space, hoping against hope that he'd get to Hades on time… 

_"Devour him with fangs of poison!" _

Now! 

Himiko took a deep breath and _blew…_

Ban's shield lowered, exposing the two to a furious Cerberus… 

The vial flew from Himiko's hand, and flames shot out and roared towards the monster… 

Aesclepius was suddenly there, in all his towering, ferocious power, and he struck at the three-headed monster, who tore at him. The snake evaded it and struck again, in a deadly dance amidst flames and shards of riverwater… 

Aesclepius gave a loud hiss, and sucked in the fire. He struck… 

"_Get down!_" Ban grabbed Himiko and leapt clear, shielding her as the world exploded in an orange-red blast of flame. 

They landed on their knees, and for a moment felt the scalding heat on their backs, before there was a snake's musical hiss and the heat disappeared. 

The dust cleared, and Ban lifted his head. Aesclepius slid back into his arm, and he saw that the job was done. Wreaths and chains of flame that did not harm covered Cerberus, shackling him down effectively in the deep crater caused by the explosion. The venom the snake had chosen was not deadly; at the most, he'd sleep for a few days. Right now, Ban didn't care if Pluto complained. Served the sadist right. 

He felt Himiko squirm, trying to release herself from his grasp. "Ban," she said breathlessly. "What happened?" 

He realized, then, that she was pressed close to him, his arms around her in a protective almost–embrace. Too close…he flushed. 

"Ban…" Her voice was suddenly small. "You're…um…" 

Embarrassed, he released her, and there was an awkward silence. Then, he said gruffly, "We got him." 

Her face seemed slightly red as she turned to look at the guard of Hades. "Oh." Another silence, then, "Does this mean…I pass?" 

He shook his head. "I don't know," he said softly, wearily. Already the toll of too much magic was telling on him; he felt weak, drained. He shoved his hair out of his eyes. "Dammit…" 

A gentle hand touched his face; he froze, as Himiko helped clear away the wet strands. At his startled look, she drew her hand away and averted her eyes, standing suddenly. "Sorry," she muttered. 

"Himiko…" Something else caught his attention, and he looked up, eyes narrowing. "Hey. The rain stopped." 

She looked up, too. "It did?" The air seemed to have lightened, and she realized that there was no more thunder, no more lightning. The non-existent sky seemed to be clearer, and she glanced down at him. "What do you think…" 

_Time's up,_ Aesclepius said to Ban. At the same time, the man felt a flow of magic from the snake, strenghthening and energizing him. 

_You,_ the man said grimly. _Had better have left protection for Ginji and the others. _

I did, the snake said. _I mean, best I could in the rush… _

Aesclepius…! 

"Are Ginji and the others all right?" Himiko asked, uncannily echoing Ban's thoughts. 

She was still avoiding his eyes, as he stood. "I hope so," he said grimly. "Or one snake spirit is in for a hell lot of trouble." He looked at her, then said, "Oi, are you…" 

"Pass," a familiar cool drawl said. 

A slight shadow of movement was the only sign of the judge, as he passed by Cerberus and came to stand beside them. Another ripple; the turbulence between worlds must have subsided immediately, because suddenly Juubei and Kazuki were beside Ban and Himiko. There was a soft whisper of air, and all four knew Yamato had left. 

"I won't ask how you got here," the judge continued, amused. Then his voice was directed at Ban. "Pluto will not be pleased with what you did to Cerberus." 

"We were told to defeat him," Himiko began angrily. Then she gasped. 

Ban's arm was ripping forward, in a sudden, smooth movement, and magic blazed once through the air in a cutting line. There was a sound like breaking glass, and shards of illusion broke apart… 

"I want to know," Ban said angrily. "Who you really…" He trailed off, as the judge became visible. 

Ban, Himiko, Kazuki and Juubei stared, stunned, into the smiling face of Akabane Kuroudo. 

"Midou-kun," the man said, in a pleased, cold purr, his hand tilting his hat in the oh-so-familiar gesture. "I never knew you had that much power." 

"You!" Ban growled angrily, but his eyes were still surprised. "You're the judge?" 

"Amaya and Shinya didn't want you to know it was me." Now that the shield was broken, the voice of the judge was definitely recognizable as Akabane's. All four realized, now, why it had sounded so familiar. "I don't see why, as it wouldn't have made a difference." 

Ban was still eyeing him suspiciously. "You knew, didn't you?" he said sharply. "You've known about the curse, about everything, even before you met Himiko?" 

Himiko looked at him, startled. 

Akabane shrugged. "I was selected as the judge, long ago, and not so long. It doesn't matter, does it?" As Ban sputtered something angrily, Akabane waved a gloved hand carelessly, and the portal to the Birthplace suddenly appeared. "You'd better hurry up. Ginji-kun and the others may be in trouble." 

All four stiffened, and Ban only had time for one last glare before his attention turned worriedly to the Birthplace. _Aesclepius, they'd better be all right. _

The snake did not answer. 

As the portal closed, Akabane's final words drifted towards them. "Off the record, Lady Poison," he said placidly. "I'm glad you passed." 

_To be continued..._

**A/N:** Whew! 0.o That took...forever... 

I swear, the next chapter will be shorter. I hope. 

**limelie**: Thanks, limelie...I hope you liked this one too. 

**gabbie**: Hello, new reviewer... Sorry I wasn't able to update that fast. 

**whyFel**: I had the outline in mind, so the only hard part was filling in the empty spaces. Gah, it took long... 

**undeniablyevil**: Tenkyu, po. Sana nagustuhan mo na rin to. 

**midou-san**: Thanks! But there are many other (more) talented writers in the GB category (and out of it). Go check them out, and leave a review for them too, while you're at it. 

**Peter the Muggle**: Haloo, Peter, hope this wasn't too long. ;; Thanks for reviewing! 

**obssdGB**: Hey, obssd! I've been reading the forums in :D haha. Yap, Himiko can be cool. It' fun. 

**Atropos' Knife**: Nope, not a twist...just a loophole established a few chapters back. Hehe...I think in the prologue...You're not yet back from Australia, are you? -pouts- Oh well. Yes, Ban got her back. He did promise. I know it's being covered, and I want to read it! Have you? 

**Elle30**: Nope, not near Tondo. Sa banda Tirona gate sa BF. Malapit ang bahay ng mga kaibigan ko dyan e. :D 

**sq1993**: Nakaka-out-of-breath na rin ata 'to. Is it near the end? Well, it depends if Himiko passes the next few trials...there are several more, until 12 Midnight, February 11, after all... 

**marbles**: I heard it. :D Hahaha...The dubbing's okay. Kazuki's voice is bagay, and so is Emishi's. Makubex...parang bakla. Sorry! Bagay na rin ang mga boses ni HEVN at Himiko. Ban's is okay, pero mas bagay kay Ginji. Shido's is...scary... 

**tsuka-kun**: Really? Thanks, but there are other really cool fanfics out there, in and out of the GB category. If you want, I could email you a list. Wehehe. Thank you for reviewing! 

**nekoranmaHP-AnimeKaizen**: Nasa Author's Notes ka kaya:D wahaha. No, not only in this one! Pare, ang haba ng penname mo.. :D wehehe. Sandali, sa banda Concha Cruz drive ka nakatira? 

By the way, anyone who wants links to summaries of the Voodoo Child arc, (not yet complete, but hey!) tell me and I'll email a couple to you. Thank bluejem for the links. :D


	7. 3:00 PM: Against Ancestors

**A/N:**_ This chapter is probably closest to the arc itself. Let's just say, tournaments/battle rounds seem to be playing a big part in the arc. That's where the similarity ends. n.n _

-Points proudly at the chapter- Look! It's (relatively) shorter!! :D

As will the next chapter be. The last two chapters (there, I just spilled how many chapters this thing will have) may be long. By my standards, yes. So beware.

**Chapter Six: 3:00 PM; Against Ancestors **

As soon as they stepped into the Birthplace, they were met by an unearthly wall of blue-white energy.

All four gasped involuntarily as they felt the electricity crackle over them. Ban cursed and shoved it away angrily with his magic, eyes narrowing. "Ginji!"

Almost immediately, the electricity subsided, and the light cleared to reveal the rest of their companions, in the middle of the starry landscape, safe and sound. Ginji was leaning on Shido and Natsumi, and he looked up and gave a bright, weary grin. "Ban-chan!" He didn't have the energy to turn tare and hug any of them, at the moment…

Ban had to refrain himself from bashing him in the head. "You idiot, what were you doing?! You nearly got yourself killed!" Himiko winced, and nudged him sharply to restrain him.

Ginji looked extremely guilty. "Eto…Aesclepius went wild, and you see…"

_I am going to kill you. _

_You can't. I'm a spirit._ But Ban caught the sheepish, apologetic note in the snake's hiss, and he let it drop. "I know about that," he said, instead. "But what was with that wall of electricity? You're draining yourself!"

Ginji rubbed the back of his head. "The ghosts were still attacking, a while ago."

"Lay off, Midou," Shido said, irritated.

HEVN was looking them over; they were a sorry sight. Kazuki beaten up, pretty badly, Juubei a little less, Ban and Himiko with slight wounds, but looking like drowned rats. "Ban-kun, Himiko-san, what happened to you? Why are you all wet?"

Himiko shrugged, and smiled tiredly at the intermediary. "It was raining, where we were."

The blonde asked no more.

**…---…**

Five minutes was all it took for them to settle down. Emishi and Paul were standing guard, in the non-existent circle…Neither Aesclepius nor Ban had put up a barrier yet. HEVN was with them, as was Shido. Natsumi was watching over Juubei and Kazuki, who were dozing lightly, healing from their injuries. Ban was standing over Ginji and Himiko, who were seated…watching, waiting.

Ginji grinned at Himiko. "You're all right, Himiko-chan?"

She nodded soberly. "For the moment." She scowled up at Ban, standing over them. "Ban, sit down. I don't know how much magic you've used up…"

"I'm fine," he said, his voice lacking the usual bite. Himiko rolled her eyes, and grabbed his arm, pulling him down. "Hey! Himiko!"

Ginji shook his head. "I think you should listen to her, Ban-chan," he said. "You are tired."

Ban hmphed and shoved his glasses up his nose. Since neither Natsumi nor Paul had packed gel in the supplies, his hair was still hanging over his face, shielding his expression. "Just to make you happy," he grumbled. He suddenly glanced sharply at Himiko. "What's wrong?"

She was biting her lip, looking worriedly over her shoulder. "I'm just wondering…the third hour ended. Why hasn't the portal to the next trial appeared?"

Ban scowled. "They're probably revising your next trial," he said in a low, angry voice. "Making it harder. Remember, they really don't want you to pass." He recalled what she had asked him, an hour or so back…_Kill me if I fail_… His scowl deepened, and his chest constricted painfully.

Ginji sensed the change in his mood, and looked inquiringly at him. Ban shook his head. _Later. _

Himiko let out a sigh, hands clenched in her lap. "I just want this over with already," she muttered. Her voice was shaking, a little.

Ban said nothing, but he shifted a little closer, his arm brushing lightly against hers, in what she supposed was meant to be comfort. Himiko looked at him out of the corner of her eye. His face was focused downwards, and his expression was hidden.

She was startled when Ginji grasped her hand firmly, and she looked up to see his bright, warm smile.

"You can do it, Himiko-chan," the other man said, his voice holding all the happiness and comfort and Ginji that made people love him so much. "You're a strong girl. Ban-chan knows this, doesn't he?" Ban made a small sound of affirmation from beside her. Ginji continued. "And we're here, we're helping you. Don't worry, okay? We'll make sure you pass."

"I did promise Yamato, after all," Ban said softly, so that only she could hear.

She had to smile, at this. She squeezed Ginji's hand in return, glad to have such friends. "Arigato," she said softly. _I won't fail any of you. _

Just then, Ban's arm jerked. Both he and Himiko looked sharply at it, sensing the warning from Aesclepius. _It's coming. _

Ban stood. "The shield…"

He was startled to feel Himiko's hand touch his arm. "Ban."

He looked at her. "What?"

She hesitated, then shook her head. "Whose magic will you use, yours or Aesclepius's?"

He sighed. "Himiko, I'm fine…"

Her tone sharpened. "You're _human,_ Ban, heir to the Witch Queen or not. You'll run out of energy, soon. I don't want you to strain yourself."

"Since when did you become my keeper?" he spat.

Before she could retort, a cold wind gusted to the Birthplace, ghosts began to gather… and a tall, black-swathed figure stepped through the portal. "Lady Poison, it does no good to delay."

Ginji started up, and let out a nervous crackle. His eyes widened in abject fear. "A-akabane-san?"

The others were equally startled…Ban hit his forehead with the palm of his hand. _I forgot about him. _

Akabane tilted his hat, releasing a soft chuckle. "It seems, Midou-kun, you forgot to tell them about me."

"What…why are you…" Ginji began.

The man looked at him, amused. "I'm the judge, Ginji-kun."

Ginji's eyes widened. "Whaaaa…"

"Why him?" Shido muttered, and Emishi nodded in agreement, hands tightening around his whip.

Akabane turned to Himiko. "Lady Poison, you will come now, will you not?"

She turned to look at Ban. "You won't use yourself up?"

He laid a gentle hand on her shoulder, his eyes giving her a silent promise before he turned her towards the portal. "Go." Aesclepius slid out of his arm, encircling the group once more, shielding them from the creatures about to attack. "I'll be fine."

Himiko bit her lip, and averted her eyes. She stepped forward, and Ginji went with her at Ban's nod. His face was set, and determined.

"Good luck, Himiko-san," Natsumi called after her worriedly.

A cold chill rushed through them all as Akabane released another chuckle. "Lady Poison," he said placidly. "You might need plenty, this time."

**…---…**

They stepped into a place that looked like some sort of ancient arena. A shallow pit was dug into the earth, around twenty feet in diameter. Spells and runes shimmered around the rim of the pit, and tier after tier of stone seats surrounded it, making the whole place look like the Rome's Coliseum.

Himiko groaned. "I don't like the look of this."

Ginji was still eyeing the homicidal judge suspiciously. "Akabane-san, what's going to…"

Himiko suddenly gasped. Slowly, as if a veil were being pulled back, people began to appear in the seats. They just were suddenly there, somehow hidden from her sight a minute ago…

In the highest seats, directly across Himiko, Ginji, and Akabane, sat Amaya and Shinya. Barely contained rage simmered beneath their blank countenances; they still hated the fact that she'd gotten this far. If she squinted, Himiko could see behind them, the faint outline of Ban's grandmother. She got the impression the Witch Queen was there to make sure Amaya and Shinya wouldn't cheat.

Ginji saw her, too. "That's Ban-chan's obaasan?"

Himiko nodded. "Hai."

Ginji scratched his head. "She looked different when I saw her. Older…"

"Do you think the Witch Queen cannot change her shape, Ginji-kun?" Akabane asked, seemingly amused. He stepped forward. "That is her true form." Finally, he raised his head. "Lady Amaya and Lady Shinya," he called out, voice sliding over the words like silk. "They are ready to receive your instructions."

The ladies nodded coldly at him, and he walked to a separated seat, at the opposite end of the arena.

"Kudo Himiko, step forward."

Himiko did, and Ginji stayed beside her, until they stood just below the seats and could look straight into the witches' faces. Amaya stood.

"Do you know who we are?" She extended her arms, the gesture encompassing the audience, the near thousand of them in their carved seats and long, white robes.

Yes, she knew, knew full well although she hadn't wanted to. "The others of the Voodoo Children," she answered, and her voice came out faint, and small. Annoyed at herself, she straightened her back and glared at them, looking almost brave in spite of her bedraggled and wet appearance.

Ginji by her side said nothing, but she could sense a sudden prickling of the air; a wary warning of electricity. His brown eyes were determined, and she could _feel_ him supporting her.

Amaya laughed. "Brave soul," she said softly, unpleasantly. "Your next trial is to fight us.

"You have passed, so far. Largely on your own. The strength of your will is remarkable, in itself." A cold smile curved Amaya's mouth upwards. "It will be useful when you are one of us."

Himiko kept her silence, but her hands were clenched into fists, knuckles whitening.

Shinya spoke now. "Your task is to win as many of the rounds as possible, by the end of this third hour," she rasped out. "The battle you absolutely have to win, though, is the last battle. If you win that, you will pass." The hag smirked. "It is, of course, the hardest."

"One more thing," Amaya said. Her eyes bore into Himiko, and she did not look away. "From now on, you may use your magic without risk of automatically failing the trial."

Ginji looked at Himiko as she stiffened. It was so strong he could see it: an aura of magic around her. Just there, unused…

"If I use my magic," Himiko spoke, almost belligerently. "Will I be open to the same dangers my brother was?"

_That black monster, lying in wait behind the door… _

The sorceresses' eyes gleamed strangely. "Ah. So you know."

"Of course, Himiko-chan," Shinya hissed softly. "You will be open. You are not much different from us, after all."

"Can I help her?" Ginji spoke now, loud and clear. Himiko glanced at him gratefully, before turning back to the witches.

They looked at each other, then behind them, at Ban's grandmother. And the lady stepped forward, her face cool, but with an air of sorrow around her. "It is Kudo Himiko's trial," she said. "Therefore, Amano Ginji may not help in every battle. I leave it up to the makers of the trial to answer his question."

The sorceress looked down at her and Ginji. Amaya let out a sigh of irritation. "Very well. But only twice. And only if she calls for it."

Ginji and Himiko looked at each other, troubled.

"And not during the last battle."

_Uh oh. _

"The judges for this trial will be Akabane Kuroudo and our Queen, herself," Amaya stood, gestured, and at the furthers end of the seated Children a white-robed female stood up. "She shall be your first opponent, Himiko."

Himiko shook her head at Ginji as he looked at her questioningly. "Not yet."

**…---…**

Ginji watched, body tense as Himiko faced her opponent.

_Good luck, Himiko-chan. _

_Not yet._ He hadn't liked it, and she knew he hadn't, but he also knew the necessity of saving your resources.

But he wasn't sure if he would be able to stop himself if she got into too much trouble…

It was there again, that urge to protect completely, to make life easier for his friends. One thing he had yet to learn was that sometimes, people needed to do things for themselves.

Sometimes.

Sunlight glinted off steel: the woman's weapons were two sais, and Ginji could see a faint aura of magic surrounding her. What kind of opponent would she be? He saw Himiko draw out her knives. They had to be enough against the larger weapons. They were magic, after all.

Somehow, Ginji knew that Himiko wouldn't use her own magic, unless she absolutely had to.

"Battle!" It was the Witch Queen's voice, with more authoritative snap in it than Ban's.

The woman leapt forward…Himiko dodged aside and struck. Sai clashed against knife with sparks of blue magic, and Ginji saw her grit her teeth, as the blow shook her body. The woman chopped downwards with the other sai, and Himiko blocked it with her other knife. They thrust each other away, circled slowly…lunge, thrust, dance away. A bolt of magic struck at Himiko. The girl barely leapt aside, dashed forward and retaliated with a slash of her knife. A portion of the white robe fluttered to the floor.

Deadly movements, too fast, for the girl had no chance to use her perfumes. Or not…Probably Ginji had not seen clearly, because suddenly Himiko was breathing fire at her opponent. The woman shielded herself, stumbling away, and Himiko somersaulted over her. Ginji saw the faint twinkle of a faceted vial before one of the woman's sais rusted, and broke.

_Corrosion! _

The woman barely fended off Himiko's follow-up thrusts. She ducked, slid forward, slashed with her remaining sai, and Himiko screamed. Blood spattered the ground. Himiko landed on her feet, a meter away, but her face was drawn with pain, hand pressed over her bleeding thigh.

"Himiko-chan!" Ginji cried, fists sparking.

"Don't!" she called sharply.

Her opponent sped forward, sai raised to kill. Himiko lifted a vial and inhaled.

Suddenly, so suddenly it made Ginji start…the girl disappeared in a blur, and reappeared behind the woman, aiming a blow to the back of her head with the handle of her knife. Ginji breathed out a sigh of relief as the woman crumpled onto the ground.

Warily, Himiko approached her unconscious opponent…raised her knife…hesitated, unsure.

"Lady Poison?" Akabane enquired calmly, and her eyes turned to him.

"Jackal, do I have to kill her?"

_You're asking **him?**_ was Ginji's ironic thought.

The doctor looked at the Queen beside him, who bowed her head in thought. Some form of communication must have passed between them, because Akabane turned back to the girl and shook his head slightly. "You have defeated her. There is no need to kill."

Himiko nodded, and re-sheathed both her knives.

"First battle, over. Himiko, would you like to step aside and heal, for a while?" The Witch Queen inquired. Ginji could see Amaya and Shinya from where he was standing. The two looked livid.

He also noticed, with some consternation, that the girl was doubled over in pain. Leaping into the pit, he ran to her and slipped her arm around his shoulders, supporting her. She looked at him, surprised, and smiled before turning to the Queen. "Yes, please."

She was given three minutes. Out of the corner of his eye, Ginji saw Amaya and Shinya turn to each other, deep in conversation. He didn't like the look of that.

He reverted his attention back to his companion. "Himiko-chan, did you take the antidote already?"

She stiffened a bit, before sighing. "Ban told you, didn't he?"

"Un." He looked earnestly at her as a neutral-looking spirit approached them. At the Witch Queen's nod, Himiko allowed it to treat her thigh wound. "Himiko-chan, you should be careful."

"I don't want to fail," she reminded him.

He shook his head. "It's useless if you die! I don't want you to!"

The girl took in a sharp breath: she remembered, not too long ago, the same words being uttered in a voice no less fervent than Ginji's was now.

As if reading her mind, Ginji went on. "Ban-chan doesn't want you to, either! Please, Himiko-chan, be careful when you use the Acceleration, don't use it too much, let me help you!"

"You can only help twice."

Ginji's eyes flashed frustration; his hands crackled. Himiko laid a hand over them, trying to calm him down. She gave a small, sad smile.

"Ginji, I would rather die than have the curse take effect." He shook his head, and she closed her eyes and bowed her own head. "You know the alternative. Would you rather I became that?"

The man, for once, could find nothing to say. "Himiko-chan…"

"I know Ban will be angry at me if I die," the girl continued, in a low voice. "If I fail, he'll be angry at himself…"

"Second battle," Akabane called smoothly. Her opponent was a rough-looking, spear-bearing male. She stood. Ginji did, too. "Do I…"

"Not yet," she said.

**…---…**

A foot nudged Ban's side. "Oi. Midou."

Snapping out of his daze, Ban glared at Shido. "What?"

The Beastmaster jerked a thumb at Aesclepius. Whose head was moderately far from Ban. "Message from him. Don't strain yourself, and stop brooding." He looked questioningly at the man seated, cross-legged, on the floor. "What are you doing, anyway?"

"I was hoping he wouldn't notice," Ban muttered, standing.

The ghosts seemed fewer, and they were oddly quiet. Kazuki and Juubei were on their feet and on guard: so were Paul and Emishi. Natsumi and HEVN were seated and resting. Aesclepius encircled them all.

"Midou? What were you…"

"Trying to sense for Himiko. Or Ginji," Ban cut in. His hands were shoved into his pocket, and he was staring at the galaxy of the Birthplace. He was smoking, finally…Paul had lent him a lighter.

Shido was amazed how many cigarettes he could smoke in a little over half an hour.

"You worry too much," the Beastmaster said. But it wasn't really an insult.

Ban said nothing.

**…---…**

The crackle of electricity covered her as she dashed forward and slashed outwards with both her knives. Her opponent was a shapeshifter, and unfortunately apt with his talents. The shifter screamed as Ginji hung onto an elongated arm and sent shocks through his body, and roared as he flung the man off. Luckily, or maybe not so luckly, Himiko was there to break his fall; they crashed to the ground and rolled away from each other as a spiked scorpion tail crashed down between them. Very apt with his talents, and very quick, the shapeshifter was.

Ginji grabbed the tail of the scorpion and practically fried it, and it shifted into…nothing.

A wind surrounded them, flapping and sharp. Realization broke over Himiko's face, and she whipped out her flame poison, letting it float on the wind.

"Himiko—! " Ginji let out a startled exclamation as the air around them burst into flames. He felt the girl grab his arm and pull him out of the burning circle…

That suddenly turned into a coughing, choking, defeated man.

Himiko released Ginji's arm. "We did it," she said, smiling tiredly.

"Battle to the Lady Poison," Akabane called.

So far, she had won a decent number of her battles. This one, apparently, had just evened out the score. She hadn't used Acceleration much, miraculously, but she was practically exhausted. She hadn't used her magic, either.

Yet.

She turned her attention to Ginji, who she was now helping to the sidelines. "Are you all right?"

He grinned at her and flashed a peace sign. "I'm ok." In the battle, he had taken many of the blows and magical hits meant for her, aside from straining himself considerably. Ginji was fighting, not Raitei, although he was finding it hard to keep the Emperor at bay. For her part, Himiko knew she most probably wouldn't have won this battle if Ginji hadn't helped.

"You rest." She made him sit, and let the medical spirit tend to him.

"Himiko-chan? What about you?"

"Later." She nodded at Akabane and the Witch Queen, stepping back into the arena.

**…---…**

It was the second time she'd called for Ginji, already, she only knew that much. Time flies by in a dizzying blur, when you're weary to the bone with fighting. Himiko felt numb, mechanical, and she didn't want to think. She'd barely won the last fight, but she had the uncomfortable impression she's lost more than she'd won…

They won this one, it seemed. Ginji grabbed her arm and led her off the field…she barely registered the fact that his skin was glowing, white-yellow-power, and his hand on her arm was sparking, and it didn't really hurt because he was probably controlling it...She vaguely wondered if he'd turned into Raitei. But if he had, then Ban would have shown up, wouldn't he? Because Ban didn't want him to turn into Raitei, and Ban had the habit of turning up when you need him most even if you're entirely worlds away…

The antidote to Acceleration was being pushed under her nose. Oh. Yes. Inhale…"Himiko-chan, breathe. Come on!"

Her magic was floating around her and in her, calling to her, telling her to use it. She pushed it away, and managed to remember that breathing was an action that didn't require much thought.

The last few battles had pushed her to her limit: her opponents had been poison users, too. The very first, it seemed. It was odd, fighting against your ancestors.

A challenge, but a doable one, for the Lady Poison.

"How much longer?" she asked wearily, eyes sliding open as strength returned, slowly, to her body. Fingers touched her head; it was the spirit, healing her.

Ginji shook his head. "I don't know, Himiko-chan." He corked the vial, handing it back to her. Worry danced through his eyes, showed clearly on his face. She saw it, too well.

"I've lost more than I won, haven't I?" she asked quietly.

Ginji's silence told her all she needed to know.

They watched as the Witch Queen stood. "Fifteen minutes left." Her eyes turned to the girl. "Lady Poison, I think it's time for your last battle."

Himiko winced, at the possible double meaning to those words. Sighing, she stood.

Ginji stood, too, and tried to stop her. "Himiko-chan, rest a while…"

"Theyr'e calling me," she said, face shadowed. "Ginji…"

He leaned closer, trying to catch her words.

"If…if anything happens to me…tell Ban I'm sorry." She looked up before he could protest. "And…well, this will sound stupid, but take care of him." She smiled slightly. "Like you always have."

**…---…**

The only thing missing was a dramatic wind, blowing through the arena.

Unfortunately, it was humid and still. The light was beginning to take on the shadowed richness of sunset: it was near six o'clock, after all.

The stillness of the air was unfortunate in two ways: it was damn uncomfortable, and it was going to be difficult to get her opponent downwind.

"Your next opponent, Himiko." This was Shinya. "Is not strictly an ancestor."

Himiko glanced suspiciously up at them. "What do you…"

It was Ginji's startled cry that alerted her, and she turned to see a figure striding from the other end of the arena. A figure with dark slacks and a white, bedraggled dress shirt, and damp brown hair hanging into glaring blue eyes.

She saw the Witch Queen stir, a little, maybe in some surprise, but she was too shocked to register anything else. A nameless fear rose within her. "Ban, how…"

He struck.

**…---…**

Aesclepius reared, and everyone looked up in alarm.

Ban stood quickly, too, but not in reaction to the snake. "What the—"

"Ban-kun?" HEVN asked.

The man frowned. "Ginji's panicking," he said, and his voice was puzzled. "Something…about me. But I'm right here, and I'm in no trouble—Aesclepius?"

The snake peered down at him with golden-wide eyes. "Something is wrong."

**…---…**

She couldn't help it, it was instinctive. As soon as Ban attacked her, she inhaled Acceleration twice and dashed away…and at the same time, she flung up a shield of magic.

It crackled through her, powerful and consuming; it had nearly betrayed her by being so overwhelming that she barely had the presence of mind to escape Ban's powerful blows. Fighting it away (_keeping the monster at bay…_), she managed to keep her mind, managed to escape his attacks.

But he was so fast, she barely had time to pull out her perfumes…

He evaded her blast of flame and was behind her, she turned, slashed at him, leapt away, heard the ripping of cloth and saw a portion of his shirt flutter to the ground.

There was a disturbance in the sidelines; she barely registered the fact that Ginji was arguing with the Witch Queen, trying to stop the fighting of his friends.

_Ban—! _

She didn't want to fight him, not to the death…

As magic helped her fight, helped her live through the many sips of Acceleration, shielded her as she attacked and he attacked, she remembered what he had said, the first time he'd fought her after so many years…

_If I had been serious, you'd have been bitten at least five times already. _

He was serious now. She saw he was right. Only the strange energy she had now protected her, that and what little skill she'd gained since then. 

But I don't want to fight him…

Taking a chance, she pulled out a vial, sped close to him, received a painful blow to the arm (_was that the crack of bone?_) before shoving the vial under his nose.

His movements slowed; good old puppet perfume. He glared at her, panting, bleeding in some places (she was surprised; she'd managed that?), and she stayed a safe distance away, magic still surrounding her, not shielding, just there. She was panting, too. Pain was spiking through her arm; maybe it was a small fracture.

"Ban, what are you…"

To her surprise he ripped forward and at her again, and she barely evaded his grasp. Her lavender overshirt tore off, and a portion of the dark purple shirt underneath ripped, too. Thankfully, not a revealingly.

But that's when she noticed, that he wasn't using magic, even if he was perfectly capable of it.

And with her magical sight…she could not see Aesclepius. At all. In fact, she could sense something very strange, something that reminded her of Clayman's masks, made to deceive, made to make you believe what you were seeing was somebody else…

It clicked. "You're not Ban," she hissed out, and suddenly power surged through her, now that she knew she wasn't fighting a friend.

**…---…**

"Ban-chan! Himiko-chan! STOP!" Ginji felt panic and power in him, and he tried to keep down the storm inside him, and break into the arena at the same time.

But the Witch Queen was keeping him away, gripping his arm tight with a grasp more powerful, or as powerful, as Ban's, and she was looking at the girl and at the man as they fought, dust and magic rising and obscuring them. "Ginji, you cannot. It's her battle."

Ginji turned brown-gold eyes on her, static slicking back his hair into electric spikes. "That's _your grandson_ out there!"

She looked at him, and he calmed down a little at the sorrow in her eyes. "I know."

**…---…**

Acceleration. Hit. Flame. Corrode. Attack. Magic…

Himiko's eyes flashed rage. _You're not Ban. _

Don't try to fool me.

He tried to punch a hole through her heart: she ducked under his arm, plunged a knife into him. He evaded it but it gouged his shoulder, and he leapt away, ripping the knife out of her hand.

It was funny how he didn't make a sound.

She directed a stream of fire at him, singeing his shirt, burning his arm. He rolled on the ground, and put it out, dashed forward and aimed for her neck.

She evaded him.

And for the first time, he blasted her with magic, and she met it with her own, and with savage relief she saw that she was right, because this creature's magic was not Ban's blue-purple, but a hellish red-black.

_Don't try to fool me._ She slammed his magic away, and drew her knife. She aimed her own power at it, letting it grow, letting it change…

**…---…**

"Why is Ban-chan fighting her?!"

The Witch Queen was finding it hard to keep the young man in place, and she could feel the power of the Raitei rising steadily within hi. "Ginji, be quiet!"

"No!" Thunder rumbled, far away, lightning flashed. Amaya and Shinya jerked in their seats, and stared in his direction.

The Witch Queen gripped him hard, glared at him with eyes as blue as Ban's. Her long white hair was floating, in the static, but she was unhurt. "Ginji. Any wrong move you do could mean death for Himiko. And Ban." She tilted her head in the direction of the two sorceresses, who were the makers of the trial, the holders of fate.

Akabane was silent, and his hat was pulled low over his head. He was watching, but he was tense.

And suddenly, he spoke. "That's not Midou-kun."

Both heads turned to him, in sudden, startled confusion. "What?" Thunder rumbled again.

"If the two of you would clear your minds a while, and look, you'd see what I see." There was a pause, then a sudden, nearly surprised, "She won."

They turned back to the arena. And saw Himiko, with a long sword, that was thrust into Ban's back and through his heart.

**…---…**

Himiko turned tired eyes on the three of them, and the look on her face stopped the cry on Ginji's lips. "This is not Ban," she said clearly, wearily.

With her free hand, she put a hand on the shoulder of the corpse before her, and made a long, tearing motion sideways. There was a searing rip, and a crack, and the magic dissolved, leaving the white-robed form of…whoever it was, skewered on the end of her sword.

At the same time, Ginji thought he heard Ban's voice in his mind. _"Oi! What's wrong with you?"_ He stiffened, and then let a relieved smile break over his lips. "She's…right."

The Queen beside him shook her head. "Why didn't I…" Then her eyes narrowed, and Ginji thought he saw a sheen of magic leave her. She turned and glared at Amaya and Shinya.

Himiko lowered her sword, and let the body slide off the tip. She turned to face Amaya and Shinya. "I won."

Ginji saw, with some discomfort, that the two sorceresses seemed unruffled. "Yes, you did."

She had won the last battle: according to their outlines, she had won the trial. _Why aren't they…_

Akabane stood abruptly, and grasped Ginji's arm. "Let's go, Ginji-kun."

Himiko spun and stared at him, startled, and Ginji looked at him warily. "I'll just get Himiko-chan."

"No."

"What?!" Electricity shot through him again, but Akabane remained unaffected.

"She may not come."

"Akabane-san!"

"Jackal!" Himiko was running to them, and the Witch Queen was reaching out an arm…

The arena disappeared in the swirl of a portal.

**…---…**

Ban swore. "Ginji!"

Everyone looked at him. "Ban?"

"Aesclepius, pull them out, before he tears up the fabric of the Birthplace!"

There was an explosive crackle of magic, and lightning shot out of the portal. Ginji was angry, very angry, and Akabane barely warded off his blows.

"Ginji!" Ban saw, with a sudden jolt of fear, that Himiko was not with them. "Oi! What happened? Where's…"

**"She passed!"** Ginji roared at Akabane, and everyone else flinched back at his electric anger. "Why did you leave her?!"

Ban's eyes narrowed. "What?"

"It seems like Lady Amaya and Lady Shinya failed to tell you," Akabane said, in relative calm, but there was an undercurrent of anger in his voice, too. "There is one trial Lady Poison must pass alone."

Ban and Ginji cursed him, simultaneously. He looked coldly at them, and they fell silent when they saw that his usual smile was not on his face. Ban reached Ginji's side, and the other stopped crackling, a little.

"Do not think," Akabane said softly. "That I do not care about what happens to the Lady Poison. She has been a close acquaintance of mine, and an apt partner in business."

Apparently, Akabane had some semblance of feelings, after all.

"Then do something…" Emishi began.

"He can't," Ban cut in sharply, coldly. "He's the judge."

Ginji's head was bowed, his shoulder shaking with suppressed rage. He was still glowing unearthly blue-white.

Akabane tilted his hat. "If all goes well, Miss Himiko will be back at the ninth hour." His purple eyes slid over them, and they saw something like…a warning. "After that, it will be the final, and the most crucial trial."

Ban nodded, once. Akabane turned, and vanished back into the portal.

**…---…**

Himiko turned and glared angrily up at the sorceresses. "Traitors."

"Technically, no," the Witch Queen said bitterly. "Their agreement with Ban was that you may have companions in your trials. It was not a requirement, only an option."

"It is time for your next trial, Kudo Himiko," Amaya said smoothly. A doorway opened, just below the area they were sitting in: it was the same doorway she'd gone through, in her first trial, the ancient one marked by countless generations, countless races. Amaya and Shinya were beside it, suddenly, holding the door open for her. "Come."

Himiko gripped the hilts of her knives tightly, and grit her teeth, before walking forward.

_I won't fail. _

I promise.

To Be Continued…

**Author's Notes: -**insert shameless advertising here- Hey people! Please stay tuned for "Pretty With a Shockwave", a Fruits Basket fanfic co-written with Riyuji.Raicho n.n It'll be out...soon. Maybe next week. For those waiting for the sequel to Where Do Babies Come From...sorry! It's not clicking right now, but yes, we're still writing it. Let's say, we're on hiatus. Yes, it is possible to be on hiatus even if the fic isn't posted yet. n.n

**Limelie:** limelie…how could it have taken you two nights? You read it the night I posted it, and I got your review the morning after… 0.o Thanks for reviewing. n.n Will do (re: Nekomi)

**Akabeko:** Akabeko-san! :D nyahaha. Thanks for reviewing!

**obssdGB:** Bakit ho, obvious ba? :D oh well! Tenkyu for reviewing!

**marbles:** XD Guess I couldn't help it. XD Yes, that part when he appeared was the giveaway. :D

**undeniablyevil:** I lab books. Books are my PRENDS. :D pero, secret natin to ha…nag-research ako sa Encarta. :D hahaha. Oo, tatapusin ko. Siyempre… :)

**Naga:** Naga…you're the writer of that really really nice story Riyuji and I were reading. Are you continuing it? Was the guy REALLY abducted by aliens? :) Hope this was a quick enough update. Bai bai!

**Elle30:** Hehe, I was trying to make Akabane not-so-obvious, yet obvious since…the beginning of the fic. Sorta. :D Like I said to marbles, yes, couldn't help but put in a BxH moment. n.n Ooooh well… :D I enjoyed writing that, anyway.

**NekoRanmaHP-AnimeKaizen:** From now on…I shall call you NEKOMI! XD haloo! I call everyone pare, mostly. So don't mind that. Hey, the spelling of Riyuji's name…don't get it wrong. n.n Talaga, sa banda Concha Cruz ka? –grins-

**Watery:** Hope this is "soon"… :D I enjoyed it, too. Thanks for reviewing!

**Tsuka-kun:** Hope you found the links good. n.n Thanks for the cookie!

**Snow-baby:** I have more Ban x Himiko. :D hehehe. Yap, proud to be Pinoy. :D

**Zorana:** I updated. :D Thanks for reviewing.

**Mayumi-san:** Really? How long did you take? –big, questioning eyes- Hehehe. I liked writing that part, na rin. This chapter's shorter. Weeheehee.

I...made a Ban/Himiko wallpaper. Yes, I was bored.


	8. 6:00 PM: Temptation

**A/N:**_ First and foremost…sorry for the hiatus, everyone. Christmas preparations are fun, even if they take forever. :) Get Backers property of Rando Ayamine and Yuuya Aoki. This chapter is not so action-ish…more like long, slow struggle. Don't worry, the next chapter's about 94 action. XD _

_I wasn't so clear in my last author's note; to make things simple, this is the third to the last chapter. Enjoy. :)_

_...---..._

**_Chapter Seven: 6:00 PM; Temptation _**

Her magic skipped up her arm, into her skin, healing the fracture false Ban had caused. Coldness zipped through her, for a short span of time; she shook her head and ignored the beckoning monster.

She was in the formless, fine mist again, with the white tiled floor of her first trial. She was aware of the two sorceresses hovering just behind her, and she did not want to turn.

A thin sliver of light split downwards, slightly to her front and left. Warily eyeing it, she was surprised when Akabane stepped out, and the gap closed behind him again.

"What, now I'm supposed to fight you?" It jumped sarcastically out of her mouth, before she could stop it. Some part of her was horrified: this was Jackal she was talking to, bloodthirsty, scalpel-wielding, and unnaturally powerful. The other part of her was fed up with everything and, more than ever, just wanted to be done with the whole matter.

Surprisingly, he showed no sign of annoyance, merely shaking his head and staying where he was. "The Ladies Amaya and Shinya shall tell you of your trial. I will be accompanying you throughout, to judge you. However," his voice suddenly became softer, and expressionless. "You cannot ask any help from me"

Something made Himiko bite down her acidic,_ I wasn't going to. _

She heard Shinya's raspy chuckle. "This is Himiko-chan's last trial."

She managed a lazy, but scathing tone. "Forgotten how to count, old hag? It's my second to the last."

The crone chuckled, an almost prophetic, unnerving sound. "We'll see. But to tell you the truth , I doubt it."

Himiko's temper snapped, and she felt the magic in her surge in response. Angry, colorless fire-lightning leapt up around her, and the three others stepped back…the blaze began to fluctuate, from blue-purple to red-black, and back again…

With all her stubborn determination, she hauled the magic back inside her, willing it to stay under control. Once she had forced it back into herself, she spun around and spat something very, very rude at the hag.

Amaya's eyes gleamed with evil amusement. "The Midou boy is rubbing off on you too much."

Himiko glared.

She missed the sudden flashing movements the sorceresses made with their hands, because suddenly there was a sharp pain and a strange, transparent feeling…black torrid smoke seemed to billow out of her ,and she retched, doubling over, senses screaming alarm. When she could lift her head, a strange chill permeated her blood. Slowly, she turned to see a pitch-black, shapeless mass, with only two hooked claws discernible, staring at her with hell-fire eyes.

Himiko gulped as she recognized the monster behind the door.

"Your curse, personified, will walk beside you in this trial," Amaya told her softly, with a frightening note of certainty in her voice. Certainty…of failure?

"To pass, you must not give in."

**_…---…_**

Ban's eyebrows were drawn together, his face set in a dark scowl. "She used her magic. They let her. That can't be good…"

Ginji bowed his head, form slumped against the coils of Aesclepius. "Sorry, Ban-chan."

Ban took one look at his dejected posture, sighed, and punched him lightly on the head. "It wasn't your fault."

"Midou-san, what are the risks? Why should Himiko-san not use her magic?" Kazuki asked.

"I explained it to monkey-man over here," Ban said, jerking his thumb in the other man's direction. Predictably, the Beastmaster glared. Ignoring him, Ban continued. "Himiko's elder brother opened his defenses, the first time he deliberately used magic. The curse didn't take effect, but he was more vulnerable to it." Even those who didn't know him well could sense the almost tangible worry in his tone.

A loud gunshot reverberated through the Birthplace, causing everyone to jump, various weapons emerging. Natsumi looked down, from where she was perched on Aesclepius's back made an apologetic motion, and shot again.

Emishi's eyebrows shot up. "When'd she get up there?"

Ginji though, noticed something else. "Is she all right?"

HEVN sighed. "Natsumi-chan has the tendency to just need to do something if things get overwhelming. I guess she didn't want to sit around talking." The intermediary walked towards the young girl, deftly scaling Aesclepius's back to reach her. She began talking to her, quietly.

Ginji turned his attention back to Ban, who was concentrating once more on the problem at hand. "Ban-chan…"

Suddenly, his partner's head shot up, eyes gleaming. "The lighter. She still has it."

Paul, who had been standing silent since Ginji had begun telling what happened, raised his eyebrows. "And hopefully, that spell you put on it hasn't worn off…"

**_…---…_**

The tiles bulged and shifted in front of her, rose and reformed to make a flight of stairs, climbing upwards for as far as her eye could reach. She stared. "Does that have an end?"

"Yes," Akabane answered from behind her, his voice strongly deadened by the motionless presence at the girl's side. "You must reach it, and endure whatever happens to you as you step on the stairs, if you want to pass this trial."

Himiko ignored the "if", and the morbid possibilities and cold fears it planted in her. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath…for a moment, she could see Ban's face, his eyes burning into hers and telling her brusquely not to fail. Ginji's face rebuking his partner and then smiling comfortingly at her followed. A slight smile twitched the corner of her mouth, and she opened her eyes, braced herself and took the first step…

Surprisingly, nothing happened. Himiko felt a rush of irritation swamp her. "Sadists," she muttered. "What joy they find in prolonging tension, I'll never know."

She thought she heard Akabane chuckle.

Warily, she continued climbing, step by careful step, ready for the stair to crumble under her, or something to leap out at her, or…well, anything that the twisted minds of Amaya and Shinya could dream of. The silent, threatening form of her curse hulked beside her, while the cold aura of Akabane remained at her back.

_Definitely not companions I'd normally choose for something like this. _

There was a low growl, and a large, dog-like creature appeared a few steps ahead. Alert, she leapt aside just as it leapt for her, and flung her hand out with a bottle of Degeneration perfume ready…

Wait, why was there a knife in her hand?

Jerking her hand to a halt, she ducked as the beast jumped for her again, and it soared over her head and into the abyss of mist.

Himiko stared, brow furrowed, at the knife in her hand. She could have SWORN she'd reached for her bandoleer of perfumes, and not for her knife—it was creepy, like the time MakubeX had made her his puppet and used her to attack Kazuki. But the control was not so complete her, because she had been able to stop her hand…

Tendrils of shadow detached from the veins of said hand, and she shot to her feet when she saw them sink into the black form of her curse. The unearthly fire in its eyes seemed to be almost…amused.

"What the hell was that?" Himiko asked sharply.

The shadow just continued looking at her, expectantly. She turned to Akabane, and raised a demanding eyebrow. "Jackal…?"

"The way I see it," the man answered sedately. "You must stay on your guard, or that creature will take over your body."

Himiko recalled Amaya's words. "Must not give in…" She spun on her heel and strode up the stairs, giving the shadow as wide a berth as she could in the limited space. "Damn you all."

Before Akabane could follow, the shadow suddenly reared up, eyes sparking angrily. The doctor merely stayed in place, coat flapping in the rush of wind that sprung up, and the girl jumped defensively backwards, teetering and nearly falling off the edge of the stairs before regaining her balance. "What the…?!"

**_…---…_**

There was a loud yell, and cries of alarm spun through the air as an immense force flung Ban backwards into the barrier. The man groaned, and cursed as he tried to rise.

"Ban-chan!"

Ban waved Ginji's arm away, but his partner insistently helped until he was up on his feet. HEVN and Natsumi had slid off the snake at Ban's cry, and were now asking if he needed treatment. Shaking his head no, he turned in the direction of Aesclepius. "What the hell was that?"

The snake flicked a tongue out at him, hiss harsh. "What hit you?"

"I wouldn't ask if I knew, would I?" Ban said acerbically. He rubbed his temples, feeling a headache coming on. "Whatever it was, it shouldn't be there. Himiko doesn't have that much power, and I don't think she would even if her curse came into effect. Can you find out what it is?"

The snake's eyes glazed over. Ban suddenly knocked him sharply on the head. "Be _careful,"_ he snapped. "It felt powerful enough to do to you what it did to me.

Aesclepius flicked his tongue, a little irritated…and continued with what he was doing. Ban gestured for the others to stand back.

Suddenly, the snake's eyes flashed, and it hissed, body contorting and narrowly missing Emishi. The others scattered, trying to avoid the thrashes. Ban yelled something and grabbed him to calm him, and Aesclepius turned his head to the man. "It's her curse."

"What?!"

Aesclepius hissed, rearing in agitation. "It's her curse. That's what you felt. Alive. Think you and me," he said, seeing that Ban didn't really get it. "I'm not in your body now. Likewise, the curse is not in her body, and it's been made physical."

Ban's face grew stormy, and he gripped his head in his hands, frustrated. Curses spewed out of his mouth, and he didn't really bother to keep his voice down.

The others remained silent, trying to digest the news.

Ban lifted his head, and fixed a glare on the snake spirit. "Help me find a way around that thing."

**_…---…_**

Twenty minutes into the trial already, and the stair was nowhere near its end.

A sixth sense made Himiko look up, and she stopped dead in her tracks. "No way."

Some distance ahead of her, silent and foreboding, were row upon row of familiar, transparent figures. They stood, several upon each step, again nearly as far as Himiko's eye could see.

The girl half-turned to Akabane, her face nearly desperate. "I don't want to touch those ghosts." She ignored the black form of her curse, which suddenly seemed more threatening than before.

Akabane's voice was quiet, and if she didn't know better, almost apologetic. "You must, if you want to pass. They may touch you now, because it is part of your trial."

Himiko stared up at the sea of dead looking down at her, all six hundred and sixty-six generations of them. Their countenances were blank, but she thought she saw a simmering greed, every time they looked at her. They were silent, even in her head. For one brief moment, she envied her brother, dead and free from the threat of carrying all the ancestors in his body.

Both Ban and her brother appeared in her mind's eye, glaring at her angrily. _Don't be an idiot. _

Himiko gave a weak smile.

She felt a cold brush on her right hand, and she jerked away, staring up at the towering black cloud of her curse. Her hands trembled, suddenly clammy, but the stance of the thing seemed to be only questioning.

"It is wondering, as I am," Akabane said calmly. "Whether you will turn back, or go forth. This trial is timed, you know."

She straightened her back, and lifted her head proudly. "I'm not stupid," she snapped. "If I turn back, I fail right away."

The curse drew away, and Akabane smiled.

Himiko turned and, without further delay, climbed resolutely up the stairs. She could see the ghosts' eyes now, staring, staring…looking straight at them, she walked into the sea.

It was like plunging into something cold, and insubstantial. She gasped as a sudden dizziness attacked her, nearly driving her to her knees. It was suddenly hard to move, and she just barely managed to get one foot up on the next step, and drag the other foot behind it. Presences groped in her mind, peering, prodding, invading. Whispers filled her head, taunting and teasing her. Angrily, she grabbed the fringes of her mental self together, shoving the invaders out.

_Next step. _

Pulling herself up, she felt freezing physical fingers trail across her skin, into her hair; up her spine and down her arms. She shuddered, and pushed forward again.

_Next… _

Have you come to join us, Himiko-chan? Nearly audible, murmurs shivering in the air and dripping from the sky, pouring over the steps and slipping into her mind.

_Shut up,_ she thought fiercely, making it to the fourth set of ghosts. She was nearly bent over double now, as she continued her struggle up the stairs.

You're so close… _Close to what?_ You will be perfect. _Perfect?_

Himiko himiko himiko himiko…

Why were they calling to her? She could hear them and feel them, alert in her mind. Sweet, seductive, powerful as siren-song…Lulling her defenses and making her stop, eyes drooping, as she stumbled forward, tripped on the steps…She thought she sensed Akabane move, behind her, but stopping, with great effort. Because being a judge, he cannot interfere… she remembered dimly.

Spirits swept over her and were going to get her…

"Stop!" a voice ordered. It was a stirring voice, a booming voice: not deep, not high, compelling and magnificent, sending a strange shuddering thrill through her. Himiko opened her eyes...when had she closed them? Why was she sprawled on the steps, as if she had collapsed? Below and above her were the ghosts of her ancestors; she was set in the very middle of them. They were backing away from her, staring at something over her head.

A glowing hand entered her line of sight: a shining body followed. Himiko propped herself up on one elbow and squinted, and the light dimmed—a little—to reveal a creature of incredible beauty.

Light poured from it, surrounded it, was it. Wings stretched above and beyond its being, encircling it and brushing against her. _Angel, _she remembered. She often saw them in pictures, and decorating Western-influenced places, churches, cemeteries, fountains…the images did no justice. The angel was beautiful, indescribable, serene and calm, smiling at her and filling her with sweet relaxation. The angel extended its hand, taking her own and lifting her up. "Himiko, you're doing fine."

She felt soothed and pacified. Her body ceased to ache, her mind ceased to turmoil. The angel brushed her hair back, and peace flooded her. It was going to draw her into a protective embrace…

An angry shriek brought her back to her thoughts. Both her head and the angel's snapped to the side…below, Akabane was standing, his posture tense, and her curse was writhing angrily, twisting as if trying to escape. Faintly she seemed to see the jaws of a giant snake—

The lighter burned blue-ice-hot in her pocket and against her skin, and she let out a cry of pain. Drawing away a little from the angel, she pulled the object out and flipped it open. "Ban—!"

A faint image of Ban appeared beside her in an aura of blue flame. He looked both worried and angry. "Oi! What's happening here, I couldn't get to you…"

The angel in front of them let out a strangled, shrieking cry that didn't have anything angelic about it. Himiko stared.

Ban's attention turned to the angel, and his eyes snapped narrow, glistening anger. He grabbed Himiko's arm, and she felt his insubstantial hand sink into her flesh. A strange image bloomed into her mind's eye: a tapestry-like weaving of a magical spell.

The angel was swooping forward, face contorted in murderous intent…

Blindly, upon instinct, Himiko flung her hands up protectively and let her magic skim out of her. In quick, thoughtless movements, she made it weave into the pattern Ban had shown her. It was easy, surprisingly, natural, and the color of the flaming weaving was blue and light and nearly transparent.

The angel slammed full force into the net, shrieked, and shrank. Left hanging upon the tendrils, glaring angrily at her, was the pearly figure of one of her Voodoo Children ancestors.

Himiko stared down at it, her mind blank and unable to comprehend. She turned when Ban let go of her arm. "What—"

"That was no angel." He shoved his glasses up his nose, then swept his hair out of his face. Dimly she thought how much he looked like his old self: hair down, mouth twisted into a wry half-smile, half-grimace. "Angels don't usually manifest themselves that way nowadays, if they choose to manifest themselves at all. Don't be fooled by what you see, Himiko."

"How--"

"I'm not really here," he interrupted, frowning, and he tugged at her arm and made her continue the climb. The ghosts swirled around her again, but for a while she was able to ignore them as they climbed, and she focused only on listening to Ban.

"I'm still in the Birthplace," the man muttered. "Your curse was blocking me from reaching you so I couldn't find out what was happening. Now I know…" Ban faded away, but the lighter's metal still burned into her hand, no longer bitingly, but still noticeably.

"You be careful, Himiko," his voice echoed in her mind. "You almost failed, there. And hurry up." She felt him call out sharply to Aesclepius, who released her curse and disappeared.

The shadow turned and tore up the stairs, towering over her and glaring accusingly.

She glared back up at it. "They're not mine to control. Don't blame me."

It seemed to shrink, grudgingly, and it released her from its gaze.

Akabane came up behind it, and gestured her to move forward. "Well done, Lady Poison," he said, quiet amusement in his voice. "You followed the pattern Midou-kun set for you well. It proves you are quite adept in magic."

A stray thought struck her. "I won't be penalized for Ban's interfering?"

Akabane shrugged. "Your brother is the only one forbidden to help you."

_Oh._ The lighter continued to scorch her, almost comforting. She gripped it tighter as she climbed, the odd sensation distracting her from the further whisperings and touches of her ancestors. Hottest was the engraved KY, and she could feel it pressed into her skin.

_I don't care if there's a scar after this. I just want to pass this trial. _

**

_…---…_

**

Ban stumbled, and found himself being held up by Shido and Ginji. Muttering something indistinctly, he tried to shake them off. They kept their grip and forced him to sit down. Propped up against Ginji, Ban could feel his eyes sliding wearily, slowly shut.

Natsumi crouched beside them. "Is he all right?" Shido watched as he stood, and the others leaned forward, too, trying not to crowd.

Ginji looked up at the gigantic head of the snake, shifting to keep Ban from falling over. "Aesclepius?"

The spirit drew closer, tongue flicking in and out and touching Ban's face gently. A ball of soft light, with the tiny image of a lighter in it, passed from Ban to the snake, and the man stirred and groaned out something. Aesclepius lifted his head, and sounded stern. "You've strained yourself too much. I'll take charge of that for a while."

To the others, he said, "It's the pressure of inter-dimensional magic, on top of everything else." His stare slanted down to the semi-conscious man. "Let him sleep it off."

**_…---…_**

Himiko pushed past the last ghost with a gasp…and was knocked off the steps by a huge, bat-like beast.

She let out a cry, and managed to grab the end of the stairs. She felt the whole jerk throughout the body, and the sudden strain on her arms as they tried to hold up her weight, and keep her anchored to the stairs. Mist rose from the deeps, and curled around her body. She shivered, and tried to swing herself up.

It was a long, long way to the bottom.

She caught a glimpse of her curse, and Akabane, standing on the steps above, watching…was that the slightest hint of worry in Akabane's face? Her curse was holding out one hooked claw, but that was one offer she didn't want to take. There was a shriek behind her, and the bat-thing attacked again.

Himiko gasped when she felt hooked claws cut into her arm, tearing skin and muscle with sharp, stabbing pain and nicking bone. She grit her teeth against the pain; clenched her hand as it nearly loosed its grip on the step. Blood trickled down her arm and into her face. Her hands began to slip once more, and she stubbornly scrabbled for better hold. Swinging her leg up, she tried to hook it over the other step so that she could haul herself onto the stairs….but the bat attacked again, this time at her leg.

She was left to swing again, and panic began to engulf her. But for a sudden, miraculous moment, Ginji's face appeared in her mind.

_I don't want you to die, Himiko-chan! _

An idea struck her. She looked up as the creature swiveled, swooped, and moved in for what looked like a deathblow…as it neared, she squeezed her eyes shut and released her trump card.

She smiled with satisfaction as she felt the beast come under her control. Keeping the puppet perfume on full, she made the bat hover over her, lift her, and deposit her on the stairs. Almost automatically, her magic came into effect, running into her injured arm and leg and healing them. She turned…and wondered what she should do.

The bat-thing still struggled angrily under her control. Akabane and her curse watched silently—chances of its canceling its attack when she released it were very, very small.

But she couldn't just kill a creature, especially when she had total control over it.

"Lady Poison?" Akabane inquired.

She got to her feet, steeled herself, and stopped the perfume. At the creature's shriek, she turned and ran, leaping up the stairs, ignoring the pain in her half-healed leg and arm.

But no claws dug into her back, no other cry followed. She turned, a little, and stopped. The creature was below, just where she'd left it ,and staring up at her. Something strange was in its inhuman face, like it was the first time it had been touched by mercy.

Then it flapped its wings and soared away.

Unconsciously, Himiko trailed her fingers over her nearly-healed wounds, healing the gashes with clearish-blue sparks. Akabane and her curse appeared, climbing the steps below. Akabane was placid, as always. Her curse—seemed a little disappointed.

Some semblance of relief came over her, and she turned, and continued to climb.

**_…---…_**

She groaned involuntarily, sinking to her knees. The curse hovered behind her, and Akabane raised an eyebrow when she looked up. Himiko wiped sweat from her forehead. "How much longer?"

Akabane pulled his hat lower, and tilted his head downwards, staring at the tiles. After a moment, he lifted his head, purple eyes glinting eerily. "Not much," he answered smoothly. In a very abstract, irritating way.

Himiko pushed herself up, resting on one knee. "How much time left?"

Akabane considered for a while, again. "Forty minutes."

_Oh hell. _Himiko pushed herself up, and began another stumbling half-run up the stairs._ I can't even see the end yet. _

Her legs were aching, she was having trouble drawing breath. The lighter still burned in her palm, hurting her, but driving her on. Mist was faint around her now, making the air chill and clammy.

_Tired, Himiko-chan? _

_Shut up._ She grit her teeth and pushed on.

_Why don't you just give up? _

Himiko chose not to reply. Glancing up, a flicker of hope flared through her. She thought she could see the barest hint of an end, just at the horizon…

She didn't notice that behind her, the curse was growing and shifting, blackness spreading and eyes burning brighter and redder…

**_"I can give you power,"_** a voice boomed around her. It stopped her in her tracks, and her head snapped up, confused.

And in a split second, the world warped, and she was falling…

_Falling… _

Falling but her feet were not leaving the tiles. Were they falling with her? She couldn't tell, for everything had subsided into a dream-suspended haze, and a strange detachment was floating into her. Oh, look, the mist was growing whiter and thicker. Then it was roiling away, and the world zoomed in on her as she stood in a wild, empty moor of grass, with a gale whipping up and causing the green blades to spin and bow, tugging and pushing at her hair and her clothes, and the dull sky dimmed her perception of reality and the boom in her head solidified, backed up by incessant, flurrying whispering.

_I can give you power,_ the low voice boomed again, and the whispers echoed,_ we can give you power, Himiko, for we are the many aspects of magic gathered and perfected over Time, and we can be yours if you choose and if you wield us, use us…_

She was falling, again.

Magic power filled her veins, overcame her senses like a heady draught of wine. She gasped. She blazed with magic, felt invincible, unbeatable.

And the earth was splitting and mountains rising; cliffs crumbling and lava exploding. Volcanoes erupted as tectonic plates shifted, and she could cradle it all in the palm of her hand.

_Power of the earth… _

As waves crashed and pounded and turmoiled and sang; as the dark deeps swelled with unknown and lightning and thunder danced on top of the water.

_Of the storms and the sea… _

Embers and sparks sprang into the sky and gouts of flame washed through the world. Fire ate into wood and wool, melted metals and clay and roared lovely and uncontrollable…

_Of fire and heat… _

_These are like a god's powers,_ some distant, defiant part of her observed.

But the whispers in her head hastened to explain._ No, no, not power over the elements, power of the elements. For you to tap into and use, for you to channel and shape as magic._

A mage walked the wide, wide, world, and she controlled cities and towns, awed people with the immense power of the elements she used.

Was she one to thirst for power?

_Not really… _

_Power to change._ Her thoughts were interrupted rudely, and she was shown the secrets of shifting and renewing shape: of regenerating lost muscle and bone, of growing and changing, just changing…

And she was reminded of her shapeshifter opponent, and she knew. These were the abilities of her ancestors. The abilities she would have if she let them into her body; if she carried them within her.

_Power to understand._ The language of the animals, and the trees and the winds, even the wordless singing of the rocks and stares and sea she could interpret, translate, and know…

_Power to control._ She watched as people's eyes went blank before her, and they bowed and followed her commands and will. At this, a small frown brushed her face, and the part of her that liked babies, respected people, and remembered the happy times when she was a Snatcher thought of drawing away, ever so gently…

_Power to turn back time. _

_What?!_ Her attention snapped to this, and she saw the passage of time, in the long corridor it was, and she saw once again her life passing before her and this time, she knew she could reach out, with one hand, and change it.

_I know what I would like to change. _

_Power to raise the dead._ This next one sent a little thrill of shock through her: Necromancy, the black, devil art of not leaving the dead where they should stay. And she saw, that with this, she could have an army at her back, undefeatable, always supporting her and obeying her command…and she knew, with this, she could also raise the one person she wanted to the most.

_Vengeance._ Something stroked her mind, like a spirit's hands gently probing her, and it was there, again, more than just a memory: all the hate and the frustration and the pain that fateful night when her brother had died: all directed at one person. She could see Midou Ban, pitiful at her feet, begging and pleading for mercy…

No. Even if her mind was touched by the trial and being manipulated by her ancestors, in her imagination, Ban would not bow down. He was glaring at her, pride in every line and look, the accusation and flame bearing heavily into her. And this and the sharp-soft_ clink_ of a metal lighter slipping out of a hand and falling onto a tiled floor awoke her from the spell.

Power, magic, control over others, necromancy…as she dazedly bent to pick up the lighter it burned bright and painful, and her cry was a mixture of hurt and surprise. Her mind cleared abruptly, and it came to her that in spite of their attractiveness, all that those powers would boil down to was the power to destroy.

_They will use your body. _

_A killing machine… _

Horrified, Himiko suddenly and cleanly jerked to reality, and she stood, blinking on the tile-white steps, no nearer or further than before.

Her ancestors raged in her head. _This is what you want, Himiko, it's what you _**_want!!_ **

"No, it's not!" and she was leaping up the stairs, running from the voices, dashing desperately towards the end that was coming closer and closer. The strange heady sense of power that had come with witnessing all her curse was capable of was tempting, tempting, and she ran from it, hard and fast. Her fist clenched around the lighter, feeling the delicious pain, and kept her mind awake. For as long as she could hold on to it, she would not give in…

Her leg jarred down and there were no more steps to climb; she fell startled and sprawled onto a level surface.

As she lay there, stunned, Akabane's voice rang out. "Lady Poison, you're at the end."

Relief swept over her, and the frantic-ness abated, a little. Getting up, she turned. Her next words died as the form of her curse bore down on her.

Himiko's scream was stifled as the blackness enveloped her. The claws dug into her back, dragging into her and not letting her go. The infernal-burning shadow tried to force itself into her, tried to tear her will away. Pain exploded into her awareness, bursting into a brilliance of sparking hot knives…

Another fire welled up within her, and she fought against the dark with every ounce of will and magic she had and didn't know she had.

_You can't have me! _

Under the fierceness of her will, the pressure lessened, a little.

_I don't...want…to become…YOU! _

Light splintered through the black, dazzling her eyes.

Shrill, inhuman keening pierced her nerves. She grimaced.

_Get out! Let me go!_

Brilliance speared out of her and stormed outwards, and the curse released her, smoking.

She lay on the floor, coughing and panting. Bile rose in her throat, and she retched, spitting blood. She stared at the shriveled, prone form of her curse on the tiles in front of her.

It evaporated into thin black smoke, and slipped back into her.

She screamed and clutched at her throat, as if that would force the curse out. A single, small tear slipped down her cheek._ I failed…_

"You passed."

There was a stunned silence. Then, Himiko raised her head and stared at Akabane.

"What?"

The doctor raised an eyebrow, still looking down at her. "I said it already. You passed."

"But the curse…it's still in me!"

"Of course," Akabane explained, with what seemed like forced patience. "You are not free of it yet. But you fought for control, and won. You passed."

"Himiko!" Startled, she saw that the Birthplace was fading into view around her. Cries of relief echoed in her ears, and from the far end of the circle Ban was lurching to his feet, and running toward her. She staggered to her own feet, and he caught and supported her before she could fall again. Shaking her head dizzily, she felt the shock slowly wear off. Her magic came into play again, strengthening her body, and she knew she would need it for the last trial.

Ban had her arm slung around his shoulders and an arm around her waist, the way Yamato would always support her when she was inured. He glared at Akabane. "She looks half-dead!"

Akabane tilted his hat placidly. "Did you expect me to take care of her, Midou-kun?"

Ban's reply was cut off by Ginji's yell as the man let loose several bolts of lightning. The electricity shrieked into a huge, shimmering shield, covering all of them, and a negative ball of energy slammed full force into it. Had Aesclepius not reinforced the lightning shield at the last minute, the explosion that could have happened would have killed them all.

Amaya, and Shinya, and the host of the Voodoo Children, appeared. Negative lightning crackled black around them, and their faces were contorted into ugly, grotesque anger. **_"How did you pass?"_ **Amaya screamed.

Akabane's calm voice sliced through the clamor. "Apparently, Lady Poison's strength of will is more than you give her credit for."

Shinya was spouting profanities worse and more vehement than even Ban could dream up. Akabane interrupted again. "And if you say that the people here helped her, you know as well as I do that Midou-kun was unconscious most of the time. None of the others are magic adepts. The only thing that passed from the Birthplace to here was a spell to keep the metal of the lighter burning, and there was no magical support thrown into it."

_The lighter._ Himiko wearily slipped it back into her pocket, then opened her palm and stared. The flesh was raw and red, blistered and burned. She heard Ban's sharp intake of breath as he reached to heal it, but softer hands grasped hers, spreading salve and winding bandages around the injured appendage. She looked up to see Natsumi, bent and apparently concentrated on her work. But the hands that held her own trembled, and Himiko was both softened and saddened to see how scared the other girl was, in the face of vengeful, power-hungry creatures such as Amaya and Shinya.

There was a deep, clanging noise, and Kazuki let out a yell of alarm. With a violent hiss, Aesclepius reared….but he was restrained by the cage that surrounded him and forced him into one small space.

Shido swore and rushed to him, banging his fist on the bars. They were solid metal, but reinforced with such magic that not even the snake spirit could break it. "I didn't think it was possible to cage him!"

Ban cursed the witches out loud, eyes snapping fury, but the two only glared back. Amaya jabbed a finger at Akabane. "You. Choose your side."

Everyone stared, and there was a general chorus of, "What?!"

"It is time for the last battle. Choose your side, now!"

Akabane was still, for a moment. Everyone held his breath…then, with a chill feeling of dread, the others saw that strange, creepy smile alight on his face.

"My job here is done," he said silkily, and he lifted the brim of his hat to look at them all. "Obviously, if the Lady Poison and her friends survive this last battle, they win, and she is released from the curse. I am no longer needed as judge." He turned, and began to walk, walk away. Light flared before him, and he was gone.

Amaya screamed hatred.

Ginji, Shido, Kazuki…everyone else seemed equally angry. "Come back here, traitor!"

_I cannot be called a traitor, because I was no one's friend from the beginning. _

Ban 's face was twisted into a thoughtful frown, and he sighed. "He's one smart bastard."

They stared at him incredulously. "What?"

"Had he chosen a side—and I have a feeling he would have fought for Himiko—he would have been accused of favoring from the start." The man had let go of Himiko by now, but was still standing protectively beside her. "All his judgments would have been declared invalid. Causing, most probably, Himiko to fail."

Before everyone could react, Amaya and Shinya spun around, eyes blazing. The Voodoo Children stayed menacingly behind the, and an aura of immense, indescribable power loomed in their vicinity. All of their eyes were fastened on Himiko, and the sorceresses shouted, in strange echo of the first words at the beginning of this all…

_**"Let it begin!"**_

_To be continued... _

**virgo-princess93**: Yo, kapangalan... :) Merry Christmas! Thanks for reviewing. Honey, I'm about six years older than you...alright, more, if you take my 1,003 age. :) You'll write like me when you're as old as me, don't worry!

**Atropos' Knife**: Haloo!! n.n It's so nice to have you back. Hahaha. You think that cliffhanger was to die for? Wait till you see the one in the next chapter... XD All right, I'm shutting up now. I know, when I was writing that battle, I'm like, wait, like Sunflower Arc...Oh well. -Salutes- Hai! I'll make it good!

**water melon wolfie**: Hey, and Merry Christmas! Thanks for reviewing.

**marbles**: Hey I'm only hinting bxh here. XD As much as I want it to be full of outright bxh, something's stopping me, so...anyway! yeah, rain suits...wait, you wrote one?! 0.o send it to me! XD my email's :) go!

**Lord Rance**: Hello, my friend, we meet again...from the last time I emailed you, I mean. :) Hope you liked this chapter, Merry Christmas, thanks for reviewing. :)

**limelie:** I KNOW WHO YOU ARE!! XD haha, I don't post in the forums, but I read a lot. And I saw your review to Riyuji. XD okay, mababaw ako. So blame me!! By the way, regarding your review in Rendezvous, yap, I knew that...I love the summaries I read. n.n It just slipped my mind when I posted that, coz I wrote it some time ago. Sandali...do you have the manga? 0.o Share... XD Oh, and the only reason I write long, is that I have too many words. Riyuji sometimes thinks I write too much (as in, too many words...), that's why the review in my HatorixKana fic is like that. XD Oh, and yeah, I think Hatori's dad was the god before Akito. Forgot where I saw that bit of info.

**obssdGB**: :D Hello, obssd. Watsap? :D Wala lang! Merry Christmas and thank you for reviewing!

**Elle30**: Sorry, I wasn't able to update that fast!! n.n;; See first author's notes for explanation. Did you read my other BanxHimiko fic, Chance Meeting? Hope you enjoyed it, if you did. Hah, that episode? XD It's so... -shakes head, at loss for words-

**watery**: Actually, Ban would be able to do that, if he had to. It's just a feeling, but yeah. I mean, look, Yamato was his friend, but he had to kill him, right? Even if he didn't really know he was... :) anyway! The grandma had some sort of spell on her, cast by Amaya and Shinya that sort of blurred her senses. Or something like that. Sorry I didn't update so fast. :)

**janelle**: Thanks, janelle... :) But check out na rin the fics of Atropos' Knife, X-parrot, Invader Androgynous, Riyuji.Raicho, Ellcyrs, incandescens...a lot more. Some of them, though, are for older teen audiences, so if you're not an older teen be careful. But anyway. :) Merry Christmas!

**undeniablyevil**: Pare, sorry, malabo lang ang author's note ko. n.n;; Basta, sinabi ko na, third to the last chapter to. So your wish came true, three chapters left. :) Sana nagustuhan mo to. Maligayang Pasko at Manigong Bagong taon! XD

**gin-chan-natsu-chan**: Oh, I wonder what pairings you like? Like I can't guess from your penname. XD haha. Glad you liked it, Merry Christmas!

**Littleadryan**: Sorry it took long. Thanks for reviewing, Merry Christmas!

**lyka-angel**: Yap, Ban's grandmother and Aesclepius are FUN. I think I saw that you read Where Do Babies Come From. :) Thanks for reading that!! bai bai!

**Peter the Muggle:** ...You find it scary? Really? 0.o Wow! Hehe, sorry, I'm just amazed I can write something that will scare people. Seeing as I'm such a scaredy-cat myself. n.n It was kinda hard to keep Ginji in-character here. Hopefully, I did it right.

If you like scary stuff, though, read "Snapshots" by Riyuji. It's a Ghosts at School fanfic. :)


	9. 9:00 PM: Last Battle

**A/N: **_Sorry for the hiatus. Exams, you see. _

_Anything that doesn't look like it's canon is mine. Anything obviously canon is…I won't even continue that statement. _

_Can you believe this is shorter than the "Storm" chapter? :D _

**Chapter Eight: 9:00 PM, Last Battle **

Chaos erupted at once.

Kazuki went down as someone leapt on him, others turned in surprise or defense to find attackers just at their backs. Amaya and Shinya's laughs could be heard, malicious cackles filling the air…

Himiko cried out in alarm as she felt something like tentacles, coiling around her waist and forearms. The power in her responded—violently. Like purple lightning, magic broke out of her, and the sorcerer holding her captive screamed, eyes popping out, veins bulging. But his magic-crafted tentacles held. She twisted forcefully away, breaking free of his hold, and ducked, as he exploded. She felt her skin throb, her power fluctuating out of control and driving her to her knees…Ban was shouting at her to stop even as an image with hell-pit eyes and hooked claws surfaced in her mind…

A blackness smothered her and extinguished her magic easily.

Himiko struggled against the strange bonds, panicked because she could not see…sounds outside and the sense of pain from Ban as he tried to get to her and anger from Ginji as he assisted. Panic and more from the others…she tried to cry out and reach them even in her immobility.

Amay and Shinya's faces swam before her, looking horribly alike and weirdly different. They were grinning.

"Tsk, Himiko-chan, you let your guard down too easily."

They raised clawed hands and struck to kill her…

Fangs ripped through the darkness. Himiko gasped and felt the tingling of her power rushing back into her body, and she fought to keep it under her control and not her curse's. She stumbled backwards and raised her head to see Aesclepius, his scales afire with blinding, ancient magic, jaws wide open and ready to strike. Amaya and Shinya dodged, and they were on either side of him and flinging something that looked devastatingly painful…

A powerful shatter shoved Himiko off her feet, and far away.

She seemed to get an upside-down view of Ban, body haloed by blue luminescence, arms thrust outwards and clothes and hair flapping in an unseen high wind.

Then she crashed to the ground in a sudden, strange silence…except for the low thunder-like rumble, far away on the blue-lit horizon.

She could guess what had happened. Obviously, Aesclepius had freed her, and Ban, in that irritatingly protective way of his, had pushed her magically and physically furthest from the danger. She honestly didn't know whether to be annoyed or touched. She got up to her feet, unsteadily, knife in hand. Its blade was glowing faintly, blue-purple-white, in response to the many magic auras assembling far away…

A form crashed beside her with a female cry of pain.

Himiko spun. "Natsumi!"

…**---…**

_9:00 PM. _

Ban smirked up at Amaya and Shinya. "Cheated of your prey?" he asked.

His reply was smoldering anger, and the sense of power, building up…

"Looks like we're going to get it, Ginji," he murmured to the man at his back, and magic and lightning simultaneously began to weave together, ready to form a shield…

Scales obscured their vision of the sorceresses, a deafening _crack _and the air above them was empty.

The energies dissipated. "Or not," Ban finished.

Ginji pointed. "There's more over there, Ban-chan!"

Ban grinned. "Ah. He didn't take all of them with him, then." He didn't need to look at his partner to see a similar grin on his face, or to feel the excitement of a battle worthy of the snake and the Thunder Emperor. There had to be one, in those three hours. "Ready, Ginji?"

Lightning crackled. "Un!"

…**---…**

Through their combined efforts, Ban and Aesclepius had broken the cage, freeing the snake in time to save Himiko. Aesclepius had also imprisoned most of the Voodoo ancestors, but not all. Some managed to follow the trail of those Ban had flung away from the center of battle.

They especially tried to find their last Voodoo Child.

Natsumi shoved Himiko aside. A gunshot drowned Himiko's startled exclamation, and the angry yell of a human followed. Himiko spun to see a white-robed figure, hand clutched to bloody chest and still stumbling forward.

Natsumi fired again.

This time, the man screamed and clawed at his face, and Himiko caught a glimpse of a ruined, bloody eye socket.

_She has good aim,_ she thought in some awe. To make sure, though, she swiped forward with her flame perfume, and stepped away when the man let out an agonized scream before bursting into flames.

_Two ancestors dead, _she thought with a strange kind of detachment. The other, of course, was the one she'd killed two trials back, the one who had taken Ban's shape and tried to defeat her. She wondered: were they dying, really? Because being her ancestors, shouldn't they have died a long time ago? Stasis spells, she reminded herself. _That's why they're here now. I'm their last chance to life._

_Heck, this is **my** last chance to life. _

Natsumi tensed beside her, and Himiko looked sharply in the direction she was pointing her gun in. Three more people were approaching, and fast. _She has a good aim, but that gun won't be enough…_

A wall of power sprung around the two girls in a protective shield, and Natsumi whirled, startled. Outside, the three attackers stopped and seemed to confer with each other for a while before prowling around the shield, like wary predators.

"Himiko-san?"

Himiko eyed the gun. "Is that your only…"

Something pricked painfully and sharply at her mind, and she let out a startled exclamation, involuntarily bending forward and holding a hand to her head. "Ow! What--" The shield flickered, and the ancestors outside tensed, but did not attack.

_That you? _A familiarly annoyed voice sounded.

"Ban?" Himiko cried out.

_Aa. Where the hell are you? _

Himiko glanced around, at her shimmering dome of magic, at Natsumi looking at her worriedly and the three barely discernible figures of her ancestors outside the dome. And at the Birthplace: cold, empty space, with number upon number of multicolored gas clouds, meteors, planets and bright-burning stars. "If I knew where exactly here, I'd tell you."

_Not much help…_

"I'm sorry I can't tell one star from another! I wasn't the one who…"

_Don't argue with me now. _Ban's voice quickly changed from piqued to uncharacteristically serious. _I'm with Ginji. Are you with anyone? _

"Natsumi."

_Natsumi? Ah. She has her gun? _She felt something like an invisible finger tracing patterns in her mind. Suddenly, the outlines of two spells flared in her mind's eye. _Perform these spells on her gun. The white-colored one before the rainbow. _

"What…"

_To multiply her bullets. Hopefully, an endless supply. The second is so that the bullets will be able to kill sorcerers, and other magical creatures, in case your ancestors call them up. _

Himiko motioned for Natsumi to hand her the gun, and she performed the spells as Ban continued, _I'm looking for Paul and HEVN. If you see them first…_

"I'll do the spells on their guns."

_Good. Listen, whoever you find, **stick to them. **Keep on moving, and I'll try to locate you. Don't try to locate me, and don't use too much magic._

"How do I know where to go, then?"

She could almost hear the grin in Ban's voice. _Where most of the battle is. _His voice grew sterner. _**Don't **go over on your magic. It gives more opening for the curse. It's not over yet._

"I know." _Gotta remember that, _she thought.

His tone sharpened. _Hurry up,_ he said finally,before his presence faded away.

A well-aimed blast of magic ripped the shield apart. Himiko, taken by surprise and feeling the shuddering blow to her magic, staggered back with a cry. Natsumi snatched the gun out of the other girl's hand, even as she, too, nearly fell off-balance, and fired. Magic crackled in the bullet that sped and effectively killed one of the witches.

Natsumi was startled, but responded when Himiko said sharply, "Cover me." The girl shot a mage in the leg, downing him as Himiko leapt upwards in an awkward part-somersault to evade a bolt of magic from the mage. Coming down hard, she whipped out her knife, throwing it square into the third attacker's chest. Then she finished Natsumi's opponent with a well-placed dose of Corrosion, before retrieving her knife.

The girls stood back to back, panting slightly, intent for any other enemies. Catching sight of Natsumi's gun, a sudden idea struck Himiko. Taking a deep breath, she held her knife blade-up between her hands. Concentrating, she shaped some of her magic into a lethal, accurate duplicate of it.

Something dark grappled at her mind. For a brief moment, a bright flash illuminated her mind's eye, and superimposed on the brightness was a black, thunderous form with hell pits for eyes…she squeezed her eyes shut and forced the image down.

It helped when she felt a tug at her sleeve. Natsumi looked at the two blades curiously—one magic-spelled steel and wood, the other pure purple-blue shimmer. "Are we going?"

The darkness receded. Himiko wiped the sweat from her forehead, nodded, and handed the physical dagger to Natsumi. The pure energy of the other dagger stung her hand a little, but not drastically so. "For close-range fighting," she explained. She stiffened, feeling several presences approaching. She motioned Natsumi to go in the other direction, but kept wary. "Let's go."

…**---…**

Juubei managed to flip and land on both feet, his needles thrumming defensively in their sheaths. He slid them out, body tense and alert, all available senses tingling. He smelled the faint, coppery scent of blood, and felt the soft welling form a cut on his face—product of a stray bolt of magic. His eyewear was gone. And one more thing was out of place… _Kazuki,_ he belatedly realized. _Where is he? _

Sounds to his right—they were faint and far-off, battle cries and death cries. But Kazuki's was not among them, from what he could tell. Juubei was surprised at how far the blast had thrown him from the center of the battle. As far as he could tell, he was alone.

Danger filled the air, tension, so complete he could nearly smell it. But then again, the whole day, the whole set of trials, had been like this. Yet knowing this was the last…

A faint prickle-static feeling spiraled somewhere behind him. He stilled, listening hard. Surreptiously, he slipped the needles into his arms, pressing the points that would give his skin the protective strength of iron.

Only the faintest sense of motion warned him, and he barely blocked the blow of his opponent. The blow shook his body, sharp steel crashing onto his crossed arms. He scissored them outwards and flung his attacker away, simultaneously throwing needles forward. One, apparently, found its mark—an irritated hiss of anger was the indication. Not fatal, then; all three needles came back.

Instinct prodded him to jump aside and spin, sending his needles in a wide arc. At least one other gasp came: two opponents, then.

A blade bit into his side, and he let out a pained grunt, immediately pivoting away and hitting the ground in a roll. A whistling past his ear: long steel blade, katana, probably. Juubei sprang up, backing as far away from the two presences as possible, needles ready to throw in one hand.

"Damn it, blind one, stay still!" a male voice exclaimed.

_Mistake. _Faster than the eye could see, the needles were flying in that direction…_clang, clang, clang. _All three fell back, deflected by the katana. Juubei hurriedly retrieved them, still trying to get as far as possible.

These were good fighters. Except for that one slip, they kept utterly silent. The odds were in their favor: the environment of the Birthplace had nothing to bump into, scuffle on, leap onto or otherwise make noise to give a clue as to where the opponents were. And the faraway noise of battle was disorienting, at the least…

Juubei thought only for a moment before switching his needles to the black ones, and the magnet. He was pretty sure they'd be of more use, now.

If the male had the katana, then what did the other person…

Prickle-crack-tingle, again, and the strange, hair-raising feeling he had come to recognize as magic. Juubei spun away and felt the spell miss him by inches. His retaliation was successfully buffeted away, and another bolt of magic nearly hit him. He stumbled backwards and sensed someone behind him…he sidestepped and felt part of his sleeve get sliced off by the katana man, the blade clanging off his iron arm. He pivoted away, and sensed the man do so, too. One arm flung out, and black needles shrieked through the air. A cry of intense pain broke the stillness of his battle. He got the man, then.

A female scream of horror, and the stronger, incredible pressure of magic building up with the most destructive force he'd felt, ever.

Ah. He was in trouble.

…**---…**

Fire caught on HEVN's shirt as a flame-mage attacked her. She dropped and rolled, over and over, and managed to kick someone's feet out from under him. She got to her knees and evaded the next gout of flame, and shot once, twice, thrice, four times, the last bullet going into the brain of the man who had tripped over her.

Bullets thudded into the flame-mage's body, and he clutched at his wounds, staggering back. Flame ran over the injuries, and HEVN saw, with some shock and the unpleasant reminder that she had no magic, that he was healing himself.

A soft tinkle accompanied the whistling of threads, biting into the enemy's skin, binding…and not stopping.

HEVN turned away as the threads sliced the man into bloody little bits.

"Sorry if it's messy," Kazuki's voice sighed. He came over to her, bells resting lightly in his hands, and HEVN half-expected to see blood dripping out of them. "Are you all right?"

She took a deep breath and smiled up at him. 'I'm sure Akabane-san would have done worse, and for less reason." With sudden consternation, she saw that his bandages and shirt were stained with fresh blood. "Kazuki-san, your wounds…"

The man shook his head, striding off quickly. "Not now. We have to find the others."

HEVN kept up with him. "How…"

Kazuki stopped, cocked his head, and then pointed in a direction. "Towards the sounds of battle."

…**---…**

With a roar, Shido threw a white-robed wizard aside, clawed hands wounding the man fatally. Paul shot another through the heart, and Emishi kept his whip flailing, somehow deflecting the magic spells aimed at them.

Their immediate worry, however, was not the men currently attacking them, but the seven women watching silently, and waiting. All held weapons, or had a faint glow of magic around them.

Even if they were the enemy, neither of the three were keen on meeting them in battle. And the women struck just as the last man went down.

Shido leapt up as one witch swiped at him with a glaive, and he twisted in mid-air and landed in a crouch. Another blow forced him to jump again, still undecided as to how to bring her down. His eyes suddenly caught hers, and magic shimmered in them for one weird instance…he suddenly felt heavy, heavy as lead. With a startled sound, he crashed to the floor. A hundred mimicries ran through his head, but none he knew could repel magic, or generate it—helplessly he watched as the glaive sped towards him…

A whip wrapped around the woman, and she broke eye contact with the Beastmaster. Emishi looked on grimly as Shido caught the woman's falling weapon. With a sudden spurt of speed he dashed around Emishi, and the Joker was started to hear the grunt of his friend as he fended off a blow. _Oh. Someone was behind me_, Emishi realized belatedly.

Shido shoved Emishi aside, bound prisoner and all, faced the second woman…and she let out a startled exclamation when he disappeared.

He reappeared behind her and struck the back of her head with the butt of the staff. She slumped to the ground, and he gently pushed her beside the woman Emishi had bound in the whip, who was struggling. Magic was welling up in her again…biting his lip, Shido aimed a blow at her, too, also knocking her out. He felt a little sick as he did so.

"This is uncomfortable, ne, Shido-kun?" Emishi unwound his whip, standing nearly protectively over the two fallen women.

"Aa." Shido looked warily around.

Paul ducked a blow and stood back-to-back with Shido and Emishi, the remaining five females closing in on them. His shades protected him from eye-contact spells, but his gun didn't do as much good.

Auras began to crackle, as the five closed in, ready to kill…

Emishi's hands tightened on his whip, and the sudden motion caught Shido's attention. He had an idea. "Emishi," he hissed. "Tie them up!"

Emishi hesitated, only for a moment, and then there was a muttered "Sorry, ladies," and a flick of his weapon…one confusing, dance-like movement, and suddenly all seven women were shrieking and struggling indignantly, bound together, magic blooming on their fingertips…

Shido was there, staring straight into their eyes, voice coming out in soft, sibilant hisses. Emishi and Paul watched in amazement as, one by one, the women relaxed and went limp, eyes glazing over. Emishi released them, and they did not move.

"What did you do?" the Joker asked.

"Hundred Beast Imitation, Cobra mimicry," Shido replied. "Cobras, and some other snakes, can immobilize their prey with their gaze, if they play it scary enough. It's almost like hypnosis." He stopped, and a strange look crossed his face. "Or…"

Paul smirked. "You know, what you did was very like Ban's Jagan."

Emishi had to laugh at Shido's expression.

The Beastmaster growled in annoyance and turned, striding purposefully and steadily away. "Shut up. Let's go."

…**---…**

Between the two of them, Ban and Ginji downed five fighters in fifteen minutes.

On the pro side, Ban's plan had worked. Flinging everyone away had confused the enemy, and bought them a chance of not being massacred in the first attack. But from the way Aesclepius's power was roiling in his mind, it was getting harder and harder to hold the ancestors back.

Ban grit his teeth and blocked him off for a while. "Ban-chan!" he heard Ginji shout.

"What?" He ducked and delivered a swift blow to the back of a woman's head. He aimed for the females, and Ginji took out the men—Ban didn't like hitting women, but he also recognized the necessity to put them out of action. And Ginji had too soft a spot for girls.

A well-aimed spell incinerated a magic-caster. "Oi! Ginji!"

Ginji ducked under a blow and spiked electricity into two people, letting them drop when he was done. "Can't you use…?" He didn't finish his sentence, partly on purpose, partly because he was busy avoiding the attacks of a chain-and-mace wielding warrior.

Ban understood. "These people use magic," he shouted back. "They have ways to block the Jagan, and to fend off my magic." I need a distraction, he thought to himself silently. The sharp-orange tang of blazing fireball caught his eye, and he erected a shield around himself and Ginji. With a loud _boom_, the fireball shook the shield, and Ban could feel the shaking into his very bones. He dropped the shield, and of one accord, Ban and Ginji sprang away from each other, fighting hard.

And in seconds, Ginji had pressed his palms together and shut his eyes, and electricity crackled out of him and roared from strange, obscure spots in the Birthplace, attracted to his call. Dancing lightning surrounded him, and the boy reveled in it, static sparking over his skin, into his hair, making him glow with that strange, unearthly light. One _push_, and the lighting sped away from him, towards his adversaries.

People shrieked and jumped to get out of the way; some died, not quick enough to shield themselves with magic, others barely made it. And Ban grinned, magic welling within him as he watched the sparks and shockwaves avoid him. He could always count on his partner to back him up.

Ginji opened his eyes. "Ban-chan, go!"

Ban's pupils expanded, then dilated, and he pulled a bit of magic out into them to perform a spell he'd been taught in theory…and hopefully, it would work.

Ginji gave a start as Ban's eyes glowed bright, behind the shades, but he kept the distraction going. And then Ban's eyes seemed to fill the Birthplace, staring each and everyone in the face.

Ginji blinked as the vision disappeared, and looked around. The rest of the enemies in sight were down on the ground, eyes glazed and jaws slack in strange, unnatural sleep. Ban's eyes lowered and stopped glowing, and he pushed his shades tiredly up his nose. Ginji's hair settled down, and the sparks quieted. The lightning disappeared, and he looked curiously at Ban. "What did you do?"

Ban looked at the prostrate bodies. "Variation of the Jagan, the obaasan taught me," he said tonelessly. "Doesn't cause death…I think."

Ginji nodded, looking at the downed people, too.

Ban glanced around, then. "I don't want to leave Aesclepius alone, but we have to find Himiko." He turned and nodded at the other man. "Ginji. Let's go!"

…**---…**

Shinya wondered, for one infuriated moment, _how _they had not managed to detect Aesclepius until he had trapped them, with very little effort. She forced herself to calm down—out of control and rampaging, they could be beaten easily.

It was not so surprising, though, that Aesclepius had managed it. He was powerful, far more powerful than she…as well as millennia older. Why he served the Witch Queen and her line, she didn't know, because he had the power to break free and claim his own freedom, anytime.

She focused on the present and saw her sister and their descendants, driving arrows of darkness into the snake-spirit flesh surrounding them. Aesclepius shuddered in pain, but held. And yet she could feel him weakening…

Signaling to a few of the descendants, she told them to stay by her side and wait for her signal. Amaya threw her a glance of almost-approval as she prowled up and down the length of their prison. Now, if she could just find a weak spot…

…**---…**

The strangest feeling assaulted Juubei, and suddenly he could _see._

He saw a dark-skinned, black-haired woman standing yards away from him. He saw that her hands were raised, and that negative energy was storming in her, ready to erupt.

He also saw his own hands rise, in response, and suffuse her with blue-green light. He stared in amazement as the light overcame her dark and she crashed to the ground, unconscious.

"I'm not magic!" he said aloud, unnerved by the feeling coursing through his blood.

_No, you aren't_, a dry voice agreed. _I am. _

Juubei realized when he'd felt this before. "…Kudo-san?"

_Ban's right, _Yamato said in acknowledgement. _It's not wise to let you wander in a magic-ridden place alone. _

The doctor decided to take no offense. "Have you seen anyone else?"

"Wait." The sight left him momentarily, and Juubei felt the ghost partially lift out of him. There was silence, for a while, and then, _There._

"Who?"

_Kazuki and the mediator._ Yamato slid fully back into him, and the sight returned. _To your left. _

Juubei wasted no time in trying to find them.

…**---…**

A strange waving was starting to form in the air: a substance that caused her vision to distort slightly, making things harder to see more than ten feet around.

Himiko didn't know how long it was, hours or minutes of short battles and trying to locate people without magic.

It was hard.

She and Natsumi rested for a while, still on alert. Irritated, Himiko tried to clear her mind. How was she going to find people in the featureless Birthplace, without technology or magic?

She looked up at the sudden _click _of Natsumi reloading her gun. "Something's coming," the high school student said softly.

Himiko went to her side, looking warily in each direction. Sound carried far… and yet the sounds of battle were not helpful, because the direction was not clear.

There was the soft _tlop, tlop _of footsteps, and male voices murmuring.

A snap, a whistling through the air. Himiko and Natsumi leapt away as a whip cut through between them.

A whip?

"Emishi-san?" Natsumi called.

"Natsumi-han?" the Joker's surprised voice came. Himiko peered forward, and sure enough, three figures loomed out of the strange fogginess…Emishi, Shido, and Paul.

"Himiko-san? Natsumi-han? Is that really you?" Emishi seemed to be peering forward, too.

"Aa, it is." Shido came closer. Himiko detected a shift in him—with a start, she realized that she could sense his powers and mimicries, and he had just finished using one.

"Shido caught a strong magic aura up ahead," Paul explained. "We weren't sure who it was."

Himiko was surprised. "But I wasn't using my magic," she said.

Natsumi looked at her. "You mean you didn't know, Himiko-san? I thought it was some spell you were doing. For the past few minutes, you've been glowing."

"What?!"

"You are." Paul grasped her arm, and she was that her dark skin had a certain subtle radiance about it, making Paul's hand look dull against her flesh. "It's not noticeable as Ginji's when he becomes Emperor," the café owner observed. "But it's there."

"But…"

Paul released her arm. "Your birthday is nearly over. This strange mistiness is gathering." He waved an arm. "It's either you magic's reacting to whatever's happening, or it's something to do with the day ending."

Himiko would ordinarily wonder how and why Paul knew so much. But her focus was on worrying about her curse…

Instinct warned her. "Everyone duck!"

Dark fire exploded over their heads, and they readied for yet another battle.

…**---…**

Aesclepius hissed and tried his hardest not to lash out as pain stabbed at him again and again, twisting into his scales and skin. He was weakening, he could feel it…the magic they were using on him and the power he was using up were taking their toll. Spirit though he was, he was not almighty. The desperation and hatred of the witches and their descendants were driving them hard, magnifying their power with frightening ease.

Red-hot agony, coursing like fire through the whole length of him. Void painfulness. His eyes dilated, and he let out what was the snake equivalent of a gasp. They were getting stronger. In a few more minutes, it would be all over.

If he let them go, their obsession would drive them to suppress or kill Himiko's personality, and gain control of her body, immediately. And then they would turn on her companions…the Beastmaster, the thread wielder, Ginji, _Ban…_

An idea flashed through his mind.

It was dangerous. And it could have devastating results. Any spirit could do it, but they knew what would happen, to the place and to them…

It was the mortals' only chance. Whatever price it came at.

It took only a second for the snake spirit to decide. Ban and Himiko, between them, had extraordinary amounts of power through their different witch bloodlines. He hoped they would have enough to fix what he was about to do.

…**---…**

Ban's head snapped up. Sparking electricity into a (now dead) man, Ginji glanced at him worriedly. "Ban-chan?"

The other man's pace quickened. "We're running out of time." He caught a whiff of something…recognizable. "I smell Himiko's tracking scent. Let's go."

Then he felt something touch his mind, a seeking, searching awareness. His eyes flashed surprise. "Yamato!"

…**---… **

Himiko felt it, too. She had never felt her brother's magic before, and yet she recognized it, as it filtered through the muddling, meddling not-fog. "Aniki!"

Shido took out a man about to stab her. "Hey! Stay focused!"

Emishi finished off the last of the enemies, and Himiko wiped her knife on her shirt, before motioning them all impatiently on. "This way!"

…**---…**

Juubei, Kazuki, and HEVN darted among their enemies. Needles, bullets, and strings flew madly, but most of all they served to keep opponents away from the ghostly form of a tall man in a suit.

Yamato strained his magic, weakened by the fact that he was physically manifesting himself. His mind touched Ban's and Himiko's, discerning their auras from the others…and his eyes widened when he brushed Aesclepius by accident, and saw what was in the snake's mind.

_What the hell do you think you're dong?! _

…**---… **

Had Aesclepius had a human face, he would have smiled grimly. _What you would have done in my place. _

Through his connection to the Birthplace, he could feel the three parties getting closer and closer to each other. Good. It was safer that way.

Of all the spirits spawned in the Birthplace, Aesclepius's bond with it was the strongest. He had been one of its first Children, after all. He knew more than his brothers and sisters did the weave and make and interlocking elements of each of its parts.

Aesclepius shifted himself and his prisoners very carefully to a certain spot. Then, his eyes filmed over and he rested his head on the Birthplace floor.

And he began to press himself in.

…**---… **

Himiko felt this strange shifting first, her senses keenly attuned to her surroundings, for now.

She also felt the presence of two other strong auras.

"Ban! Aniki!"

From the side, ropes shot out and twisted around her, trapping her…

And then there was a choking sound, and an electric crackle. Bodies thunked to the ground, and Ban and Ginji stepped out of the warping air. Before Himiko could speak, Ban had clipped her lightly at the back of her head.

"Baka! You _don't _draw attention to yourself! You're the one things they want most!"

Himiko rubbed the sore spot and looked up at him, irritated. "You don't have to…"

"Himiko-chan, he was just worried about you," Ginji interjected, ignoring Ban's acid glare and stopping any more quarrels. He grinned at Natsumi, Paul, Shido, and Emishi. "Everyone, it's good to see you're all right."

"Kazuki and the others?" Himiko asked. Then, hesitantly, "…I felt aniki."

"There." Ban pointed in one direction, and sure enough, Kazuki, Juubei, and HEVN appeared, bruised and injured, but alive. With them was one tense, worried ghost.

Himiko took a look at her brother's face, and knew, with a sudden forbidding feeling, that what she was sensing from the Birthplace was something along the lines of severe instability.

…**---… **

Shinya watched with glee as her sister and her descendants made the snake bleed. The coils that surrounded them were definitely bloodstained now, and the life force she could feel form the snake was dimming. Dimming slightly, but still dimming.

And then she saw the weakest spot.

She called out in victory, and the others stopped their attacks and turned. She pointed to the spot, and motioned them to follow her.

Aesclepius steeled himself as he felt their power build up, a one-shot killing blow, meant for him. The stormy energy increased in magnitude and force…just as he wanted it. Then with a loud, deafening roar, the power was released and the blow struck.

He let out a high, keening scream.

…**---… **

"He's doing _what?!_" Ban shouted.

There was a roar, the sickening sound of magic tearing into spirit-flesh, and a scream.

Aesclepius's body flashed into view, running the whole length of the Birthplace, as far as they could see. They stared in horror at the malicious red-veined blackness that crackled along his spine, tearing the snake into two.

There was a low rumbling…and the Birthplace shook.

The mortals were knocked off their feet as tremors filled the place. And then, impossibly, as the snake split in half, the plane they were standing on followed suit.

Amaya, Shinya, and the rest of the ancestors appeared. They yelled in fury when they realized they had been tricked, and that their prey was on the other side of the crack dividing the Birthplace. Himiko watched, in dull shock, as many, unable to stop their momentum, tumbled over edge and fell into the black, void rift between the two halves of the Birthplace.

Amaya and Shinya stepped back from the divide, and looking up, their eyes met hers with unmitigated hate.

Aesclepius let out a final cry, and white, blinding brightness—_life force_, Himiko realized with a chill—flared up and out of Aesclepius's broken spirit-body, cutting off one side of the Birthplace from the other.

Ban yelled out Aesclepius's name, in abject horror and despair.

Himiko felt a tear slip down her own cheek. _He didn't have to do that…_

And then, faintly, through the rippling air, came the snake's last, steady words.

_Don't let them cross the gap. _

Forms leapt through the white light, and strode steadily forward. Some had managed to cross the void…they raised their hands and magic flickered, ready to kill and destroy.

Two silhouettes stood black against the brightness, a woman and a hag, auras screaming their murderous intent.

"Amaya and Shinya!" Ginji cried.

**_Don't let them catch Himiko! _**

And then someone grabbed Himiko's arm and pulled her back, catching her off balance and shielding her with magic. Dazed, she raised her head…and yelled, "_NO!_"

What agreement had they reached without telling her? They were leaping through the light, holding the enemies back, refusing to let them cross and get to their side. Already she could see Ginji and Shido grappling with Amaya and Shinya, forcing them back and away.

She staggered to her feet, stabbed aside a white-robed figure trying to stop her, and leaving her knife embedded in the body, made to leap through the light herself…

An arm shot out and kept her back; blue eyes burned into hers. "No."

She screamed at him. "What the hell are you doing?! Don't throw away your lives!"

"Don't throw away yours." Ban shoved her back, and she stumbled and fell. Anger built up inside her. "Ban!"

He stared at her silently, backlit by the blinding white. And there was sorrow in his eyes, for Aesclepius, and for them all. "Later, Himiko," he said softly. "If we are still around when this is all over." His eyes hardened. "_You _have to be." And he disappeared to the other side.

"Ban!" She scrabbled to her feet. "Ginji! Ban…_damn you,_ Ban!" Himiko ran to push herself through the light…only to find it had turned solid, a barrier between her half and the half where her enemies were…with her friends. Tears of anger and pain stung her eyes, and she half-choked, half-shouted another curse, before trailing off to a whisper, leaning her head against the light. "_Stop fighting my battles for me._"

"Himiko-san…" a hand came down on her shoulder, and she looked up into the face of Kazuki. The annaiya pointed to where Paul, Juubei, and HEVN were standing, backs to them. In the distance, she saw white-robed figures fast approaching. "Aesclepius did not trap them all on the other side. There are still many here…"

Himiko stood abruptly, eyes cold, and drew out four vials. She took a whiff of one, and disappeared from sight. Kazuki cried out in alarm.

A blur of motion, the falling of a fine powder and perfume setting them aflame. A line of fire scoured the ground, blocking off the enemies…and explosion sounded somewhere behind that wall. Everyone spun, alarmed, as Himiko slowed to a stride and crouched beside the barrier of light that separated the two halves of the Birthplace. She closed her eyes and touched a hand to the floor. Magic seeped out of her fingers.

"Himiko!"

She opened her eyes and glared up at them. "When they break through those flames, take on whoever's remaining," she said icily. "If things get difficult, I'll throw in another explosion." Her eyes turned to her hand. "I'm going to try to fix the Birthplace back together."

_My brother died for me already._

_Nobody else is going to._

…**---…**

On the opposite side of the barrier, Emishi, Shido, Ban, Ginji, and Natsumi were lined up, a protective shimmer—Yamato's work—encasing each. Ban glanced at the young girl beside Ginji, a pang of remorse hitting him. She should've been on the other side, where there was less danger…but there was nothing they could do now.

Ginji met his eyes, and held them, for a while. If they died now, both were grateful, at the least, to die together.

The Thunder Emperor lifted his head, and white energy crackled around him. His hair slicked back, a little, and his eyes remained the same warm, determined brown.

"For Himiko-chan."

They attacked.

…**---…**

_10:45 PM _

Kazuki glanced over at the small form of the girl crouched beside the brilliant white light. Paul stood near her, guarding her efficiently. The light, to Kazuki's amazement, was beginning to dim and flicker, a little.

_Himiko-san…_

Himiko was having a difficult time.

The magic flowered in her easily, as she stretched tendrils into the light, trying to spill it back into the void. Some instinct told her that the light would seal up the emptiness separating the rift Aesclepius made. To some extent. Enough to bridge the two planes for an indefinite amount of time.

But the more she used her magic, the more her curse awakened.

She was finding it harder to ignore, that black form lurking at the edges of her mind, its red eyes flickering briefly. For a moment, she felt the redness in her own eyes, before shaking it away stubbornly.

_I can help you._

Himiko pushed it away, trying not to let her magic falter. She said nothing in reply.

Paul, sensing her unrest, turned to look at her, but she took no notice of him.

She also took no notice of the ancestor raising his hands, reading to bring an axe crashing into her skull, and she ignored the needles piercing its vital points through.

_You're tired. _

It was true; this much magic was draining, and nearly twenty-two hours of action had pushed her to her limits. She was tired, very tired, and only adrenaline and determination to get to Ban and the others kept her going.

_I can help you._

It was standing just within her reach, silent and motionless. The hell-fire eyes were almost kind, and it stretched out a clawed hand…

_Thank you_, she said quietly, drawing away. _But I'd rather do this on my own. _

Her curse was neither angry nor frustrated; it simply settled down to wait again.

…**---…**

Ban darted around a woman and struck her hard; he avoided a downwards slash by another faceless mage and dashed to protect Natsumi, fighting near him. The girl turned in thanks, and used Himiko's knife to stab the rabid beast about to leap onto his back.

It was a miracle they were all still alive, especially when the other side had started to summon creatures to help attack.

At the center of the plane were Amaya and Shinya, encased in a globe of ripping magic and watching everything with glittering eyes. They seemed to be waiting, for what he didn't…

There was a large jolt from the wall of light behind him. For a moment, all battle ceased, and he turned to stare at it. What…

A familiar sense of magic drifted to him.

"Himiko-chan!" he heard Ginji cry.

Anger flared within him, as well as worry. _The little…! _"Himi—oof!"

Someone shoved him from behind, and there was a loud whip crack, a blast of magic and a cry, and then Emishi's body thudded into him.

"Emishi!" he heard Shido shout.

Ban caught the Joker as he fell. His glasses were gone and his eyes were closed, and he was bleeding all along one side. But he was alive.

Another blast came, and Ban flung up a shield. "Yamato!" he roared.

As the ghost appeared and snatched Emishi into another dimension, he let the shield fall and continued to fight. _Shouldn't have let my guard down, _he cursed.

Another jolt from the gap, and he was worried again. _Himiko, what are you doing? _

…**---…**

_11:15 PM _

Himiko knew her time was running out. Paul had been right: as the day drew to an end, her magic grew stronger, anticipating the final minutes of her trial. Those last moments would determine whether she won, or failed.

_I can't lose, _she thought, eyes squeezed shut. The light was definitely dimmer now, and close to breaking point.

HEVN was leaning against her back, eyes closed, breath coming in short gasps as Paul treated a large wound in her ribs. Himiko had allowed herself to be distracted, a little while, to help keep HEVN from dying, before she turned back to her work. Kazuki had erected a thread barrier around them, and he and Juubei were defending the outsides. Only around thirteen opponents were left.

_So...tired…_

The curse loomed again in her mind's eye, reaching out a claw.

_I can help you. _

…**---…**

Ban heard Ginji cry out as Natsumi went down. He glanced to the side and saw the Thunder Emperor hold her close, shielding her with his body.

Then she disappeared as Yamato took her.

Ginji turned with fury on her attackers. Ban sent a little soothing thought, to calm him down…but only a little. He wanted Natsumi's attackers to pay, too.

Many of the Voodoo Children remained, but significantly less than before.

Amaya and Shinya were still at the center of it all, grinning…

A threatening rumble, and the Birthplace gave one, convulsive jerk…

And then there was a high flapping wind, and a rushing sound, and a sense of violent movement as the light jumped and flared…

A low _Boom _and the quaking stopped. And suddenly the Birthplace was whole again, sealed by a shining ribbon of white.

At the center of this, framed in a crackling, devastatingly strong aura of power, was Himiko.

As if by mutual decision, all battle stopped. There was silence, as all eyes turned to her. Ban felt his heart lodge in his throat, as Himiko stepped forward, and forward again, surrounded by that immense magic. Behind her, warily crossing the light, walked Kazuki, Juubei, and Paul, who was holding a limp HEVN in his arms. They looked like they weren't so sure of what had happened, either.

A soft laugh, a melting feeling as the globe surrounding the two witches went down. Amaya and Shinya stepped forward. The remaining Voodoo Children were at their back, now, and Himiko's friends were at hers.

If that was still Himiko…

"You have reached your full power?" Amaya asked.

Himiko nodded and raised her eyes…and something in them caused displeasure to flicker over the witches' faces. Ban felt hope rise again.

"Without the help of the curse," she said softly. A grin broke on Ban's face, and Ginji's. The others looked significantly relieved…

_Ban, help HEVN._

He was startled she could speak into his mind already, but only for a while. He turned to help Paul lower the mediator to the ground and began to heal her.

"Very well." A rustle of cloth. "Between you and us, then?"

Ban's head shot up, and on Ginji's face he saw a _What?!_

Himiko nodded her head again. "Between you two, and me."

"Himiko!" he half rose…

She stopped him with a look. _…Don't fight my battles for me._

He grit his teeth and stared angrily at her. Her gaze softened, as she met his eyes. _Thank you, Ban. _

And she leapt aside as the witches struck, blazing purple and blue with power.

_Please…let her be all right. _

…**---…**

Ginji felt a morbid sense of déjà vu as he watched Himiko, once again, battle her ancestors for her life.

Her movements were fluid and graceful, fast and deadly. Amaya and Shinya had injuries already, she…a little more, but not as much as she would have. In the twenty-three hours, she'd grown in magic and strength…she reminded him of Raitei, at his full power.

And yet he saw that she was mainly using her perfumes to attack; her magic was focused on shielding and support…

A voice echoed around them; Yamato's, tense but strangely proud.

_Ten more minutes. _

…**---…**

A spell glanced off her shield and she stumbled a little, but quickly danced back on her feet. The hag and the sorceress stood, warily…one on her right, one on her left. Calmly, she waited for their attack…

A familiar dark presence rammed into her brain.

She gasped and reeled backwards, catching a glimpse of flickering grins on the other two woman's faces.

_RAM. _Pain…

_Himiko…_

_**Go away! **_

She pivoted as death crackled past, leapt and slid away as another tried to hit her.

Pain stabbed through her mind again, and she dropped to her knees…she was hit.

Cries burst out as she was flung backwards—she raised a hand to stop her friends, sensing them move towards her. Dizzy, she stood, and focused even more of her magic into the shield. She inhaled Acceleration and _struck_.

Her blow as a little off, due to her dizziness, but she smiled in satisfaction as she heard both Amaya and Shinya screech in pain. And then agony laced her brain again, and black whispering assaulted her ears. She felt her hands lift of their own accord and her eyes glow red…

She forced it back, and got another blow for her pains. She fell to the ground, gasping, as great weakness overcame her and Acceleration knifed up her insides…

"Himiko!"

_Stay there! _She rolled and escaped a spell, forced her magic into her body to heal. Then she let it pool around her in a bright, unyielding light, ready to…

She stopped. The long _bong _of a bell filled the Birthplace, vibrating through her being.

She and her opponents knew what it meant.

Amaya and Shinya's eyes glinted darkly, with some unknown emotion and also with bare hatred.

_One…more…minute. _

As if things had slowed down, she solidified her attack magic into a shield, and prayed it would hold. Brining out a vial with the explosive perfume, she readied it, for throwing.

_Last chance. _

There was a screaming of power, as Amaya and Shinya brought all their magic crashing down on her…

An exclamation of horror tearing from her lips, and the lips of others, as Ban and Ginji, encased in both magic and lightning, leapt in front of her.

"_**NO!!" **_

_I promised, Himiko. _

Her magic, the magic that would have saved her life, she flung it outwards and wrapped it around all three of them, pulling herself in between the two.

_You are not dying for me! _

There was an earthshaking explosion, a scream of…defeat? Victory?...from Amaya and Shinya…

And all went totally, emptily black.

…**---…**

The smoke cleared, and everyone, who had been knocked down at the explosive blast of powers, shook their heads dazedly, and looked up. Ban blinked his eyes, and stared around at the now seamless Birthplace in momentary confusion. The shield he and Ginji had constructed might not have been enough to withstand the blow, but it and their bodies as blockades would have saved Himiko. So what was that welter of magic he had felt, wrapping around him at the last second?

It was Ginji's cry that alerted them all, and drew their attention to the motionless body of a slight, green-haired girl, facedown on the Birthplace floor.

_12:00 midnight._

_February 11. _

_**To be continued…**_

**A/N: **I am going to laugh if I post the next part on or around Feb. 10.

**limelie: **Xevy-chan! :D useless replying to your review, I've been texting/emailing you for how long, now? Oh, Volume 28 of the manga's out in Jap. :D hahaha. Lalang. Wait...I think. I just remembered, I can't read Japanese, so how would I know what it says on the site? Oh well. I saw the cover, in any case.

**Atropos' Knife: **Thanks, Atropos-san. Sorry this took long. How did you like this cliffie?

**machanbanlover**: Hey! :D Inemail na kita. Watsap?

**myname: **Oo, bitin. Here's the next chapter. Thanks for reviewing. :)

**Snotty Chim Chim: **Hah, your penname's cool. n.n Yes, Pinoy ako! Thanks for reviewing.

**Elle30: **Elle…! So so so sorry this took long. n.n;; Writer's block, sorta. I have more fics, yes, a couple of more BanxHimiko in hiding, yes, but no GB chapter fics planned yet…aside from the sequel to _Where Do Babies Come From?_ which is…taking long. Yeah. But still. Really? I'll check Naruto out, then…hehe. If you don't mind my asking…where are you from? Yes, I like asking stuff like that. n.n Hope you liked this!

**Littleadryan: **Aye, I got other things to do…most unfortunately. –pouts- Wish I didn't. Oh well. Hope you enjoyed this chapter, and thanks for reviewing!

**obssdGB: **Oi, obssd, haven't heard from you in some time! Halos member na ako sa forums, kulang na lang mag-register. n.n;; Hehe. Bai bai! Thanks for reviewing!

**marbles: **Slow-paced nga. Sinabi ko, diba? n.n Was this one action-packed? …Eh? What hints? Didn't put any intentionally there, I swear! n.n But oh well. YOU HAVEN'T EMAILED ME YET! :D Hah. Am gonna BUG you until you do. Nyahahaha.

**watery: **Sorry I didn't update so fast… n.n;; Ehehehe. Hope your computer's fine, and hope you liked this chapter.

**virgo-princess93: **Yo, kapangalan! Hey, regarding your review in Karaoke…yeah, I found the ending too sweet-y too. But that's how it came out. So… :D hahaha. How will you like the end of this fic, I wonder?

**Yami Neko Tenshi: **Nekomi! Yes, am waiting for updates. So UPDATE! :D Hahaha!

**Snotty Chim-Chim: **"What really happened" is already being released, in the manga. Sort of. I can give you links to the sites with the summaries, translations courtesy of takadainmate. Thanks for reviewing!

**Alicorna: **:D I have this weakness for reading/writing stories with magic. The cool magic, not the one with little fairies and sparkly clothes…hehe. No, Ban does not have these powers, they're basically my own invention. Because the grandson of the Queen of Witches _has _to have some magic…right? n.n Hehehe. But I _do _know that in the manga Ban has other powers than those seen in the anime…his blood can heal, and he can get Aesclepius to attack without physically moving. There's more, I bet, but I don't read the manga either (Shucks!). Wouldn't understand it. A very kind friend of mine is translating, though. Right, limelie? :D

Thank you for reviewing, and glad you like the writing!

**undeniably evil: **Ako ngayon ang nagso-sori. Hehehe…kasi e! Oh well. Ito naman, sangkatutak ng aksyon. Malapit nang matapos. Sana nagustuhan mo.


	10. Epilogue: And So It Ends

**A/N: **_Last chapter. Nobody kill me. _

**Epilogue: And So It Ends. **

_Last Child, Voodoo Child,  
__Doomed to live, then die.  
__Last Child, Voodoo Child,  
__Fated to destroy. _

…**-…**

_It ends like this? _

She knew, before she opened her eyes. The very real feeling of warm stone at her back and arms secured together above her head gave her the clue.

Himiko opened her eyes slowly. Yes, as she suspected: she was at the Aztec Temple once again on the altar, about to be killed.

Amaya and Shinya towered over her, silent and forbidding. Their expressions were unfathomable.

A tear slid out of her eye and down her cheek. She shut her eyes. _I failed…_

Voices were calling her name frantically. She could distinguish them: Ginji, Shido, Kazuki…Ban. From far, far, away, faint and fading.

_I'm sorry. _

A shuffling step, and she opened her eyes to see the executioner, hooded and clothed as a high priest. A huge axe was in his hand. But no Ban this time, because the hands the gripped the handle were gnarled and scaly, with lethal claws, and the eyes that glowed behind the mask were eerie yellow.

_Ban…_

Blue eyes and grim scowl; sorrow and anger.

_Aniki…_

_I'm sorry. _

_Are you just going to die like this? _A defiant voice sprang up in her head. Her resolve flared a bit, and brightened. _Are you giving up? _

Himiko flailed around inside her, for her power…and found it. Gathering it up, she let it whirl around within her, and glow somewhere that seemed to be her center. She took a deep breath, and _struck_…

Magical bindings enveloped her body, cramping her muscles and holding her back. She bit her lip against the pain and felt blood trickle from the cut.

_No!_

Again, she tried, but the bindings held. Amaya and Shinya watched her struggle, faces stony and cold.

_It ends…like this…_ Despair came over Himiko, and she closed her eyes. _Like this…_

_I'm so sorry. _That was all she could think of, all she could say, as she thought of her brother and Ban and Ginji and the rest of her friends, who had given up so much and tried so hard to save her…

The executioner stepped closer, as she opened her eyes. _At least, I won't die weak. _

Blood-red light glinted off the blade of the axe as the executioner raised it for that one blow.

It came cracking down, into her and through her.

A terrible pain gashed through her spirit, and she screamed.

Bright metal blade cut and sliced…and darkness lifted away from her soul, leaving a mass of pure silver brightness.

Himiko opened her eyes, startled. The axe was _glowing, _and transparent, embedded into her body right over her heart. A weird, lightheaded feeling spun her out of her normal self, and blackness oozed out around the axe, spilling out of her body and onto the stone floor…

Her curse stood, apart from her, dark and twisted and huge. And the red eyes were filled with an indefinable sort of pain; the clawed hands were trembling out of a certain fear.

The executioner pulled the axe out, and there was neither blood nor pain on Himiko's breast. Then he turned to the curse, and there was a flare of magic and a blinding smoke…and then both the executioner and the curse disappeared.

_What! _

Amaya and Shinya's faces were twisted, once more, with hatred.

_What happened? _

She was too stunned to notice that the bindings were gone.

Another form loomed over her: a tall, thin man with a dead, icy aura. She sat up quickly: Pluto.

The sorcerer nodded at her, and then turned to the sorceresses at her sides. "The rest of your line has come to me," he said pleasantly. "You two are long overdue in the Halls of Death."

A blue light seeped through the air. The inner part of the temple was suffused with it; a portal into the Land of the Dead. _Doorways to the underworld…_

Amaya and Shinya stepped away, a look of almost panic on their faces.

Pluto bowed and smiled at them, teeth glistening. "Ladies, shall you go, or shall I make you?"

A wind tore howling through the temple, and Himiko felt herself nearly blown over. Amaya and Shinya shrieked one last time, with rage…and disappeared into the portal.

The wind subsided, and rested to flutter in little bursts around Pluto. The air was still cold, and the sorcerer turned his smile to her. "They were never the easiest to deal with," he remarked. He tilted his head a little, as if to look at her clearer. "Should I take you, too?"

"No," a voice said from behind her. A hand was laid on her shoulder; Himiko turned to see the white-haired, regal form of the Witch Queen. The woman raised her eyebrow at the other. "Not even by natural law is she supposed to be dead. And not because I'm presently healing her." Himiko felt, then, a spreading warmth through her body, its source the hand on her shoulder.

Pluto raised his eyebrows in return. "Is that so? I was under the impression that all that magic aimed at her was the height of Amaya and Shinya's power."

"Had she used the first shield she constructed…the one to block the power completely, the impact might have killed her," the Queen said calmly. "As it was, the second shield was—purely out of instinct and luck—a filter rather than a shield. It diluted much of Amaya and Shinya's power, injuring her considerably less than it should have. She got hurt, a lot more than Ban and Ginji did, but she's alive. Her body is healing as we speak…although those around it cannot tell, right now."

Pluto laughed at the disgruntled expression on Himiko's face. "And we are talking as if she weren't here," he said cheerfully. He bowed to her. "Congratulations, Himiko. Now, I must leave you…although, before I do, I'd like you to know I do _not _like what you and the boy did to my boatman and guard dog. Charon will take forever to replace, and Cerberus too much time to awaken. Tell that to the Midou boy…he takes too much after his grandmother." Pluto ignored the Witch Queen's unwomanly snort, and with a last oddly eerie smile vanished, all remaining of him a cold stir in the air. The blue light began to fade, and normal sunlight dominated once again.

Himiko looked up tentatively at the lady at her back. "Majo-sama?" **(1)** she asked quietly.

Blue eyes glanced down at her. "Yes?"

"This means my curse is gone?"

The Witch Queen smiled. "Yes," she answered. "The ritual was performed a while ago, as you see."

There was a silence as the witch continued to heal her. Then Himiko asked, "How will I get back?"

The woman released her shoulder and let her arm fall to her side, but the girl noticed that the witch's right arm still glowed faintly. "I will take you, if…"

A rippling seemed to settle into the air, and a few moments later, there was a distinct _crack _as magic announced someone's arrival…at the bottom of the steps, leading up to the temple.

The Witch Queen smiled faintly and turned, going down the steps. "Never mind, he's here. Stay here a while, until I tell you to come." She disappeared.

_He? _Himiko heard labored breathing as someone ran up the steps, and then the Queen said something in German. The running stopped abruptly, and a familiar but hoarse voice rasped out, "Baasan!"

_Ban! _

"You took you time," the Queen said dryly. "Was it hard getting here?"

Ban was panting. "Damn blockades. A little. Baasan, where is she?"

"Up there." A pause, and then, "Wait."

"What?"

"I have something to show you." There was the faint, bright glow of magic, shooting up in the air…and then a familiar hiss. Himiko's soft cry of joy mingled with Ban's astonished, "Aesclepius!"

"You, spirit idiot, must not try that again," the Queen's voice said sternly. "The internal damage to the Birthplace will take forever to repair, and I nearly could not save you."

The snake's hissed thanks was sincere, and the Queen spoke again to Ban. "It was hard healing the Joker and the high school girl, but they'll be all right."

"Thank you," Himiko heard Ban say, still hoarsely, and for a wonder there was no arrogance in his voice. "Baasan."

She thought the Witch Queen smiled. "Listen well, because I'm actually going to tell you…I'm proud of you, Ban."

And then there was a large snake's head appearing at her side, and a smooth, uninjured body coiling around her in what might be called a hug. Himiko laughed and stroked the spirit's scales, saying, gratefully, "Thank you for saving me…and everyone else."

When she raised her head, Ban was there, an expression of intense relief on his usually sharp face. But he forced his features into a scowl when she looked up. "You little idiot," he told her in what was meant to be a rough voice. "You're lucky you aren't dead."

"As are you," she shot back, and he grinned.

"Aa." He held out a hand to her, and raised an eyebrow when she looked at it in surprise. "Can you stand by yourself?"

Shrugging, she took it, and carefully raised herself up. Ban kept hold of her hand, however, once she was safely standing.

"I'm going to take us back," he told her. "Don't let go, your spirit may get lost."

"What do you mean, 'my spirit'…"

He smiled grimly. "If I'm not mistaken, right now Ginji and my body are trying to revive your body in the Birthplace."

"Oh."

The Witch Queen appeared at their side. "Be careful," she told them. "Spirit ways can get very confusing."

Ban grinned down at Himiko. "Don't worry. We have a guide."

Himiko was puzzled, and then her eyes widened with joy as another figure materialized beside Ban.

"Aniki!"

Himiko practically threw herself at her brother, who grinned and returned the hug. "I'm glad you passed," he said. "You scared me for a bit there. Both of you, actually," he said, glaring at Ban.

The other man shrugged. "Oi, what would you have had me do?"

The Queen was still looking at them, eyes twinkling slightly. And then she raised her head, as a wind stirred the place, and seemed to listen to something. At Ban's questioning look, she shook her head ruefully and raised a hand. "I am being called, to somewhere else. Visit me sometime, Ban, and bring Ginji if you want." She tilted her head in Himiko's direction. "It would be nice to see you again, too."

Himiko thought she saw a bit of reluctance in Ban's eye, but he just shoved up his glasses and gave a sort of smirk. "Aa. Ja, then, 'baasan."

To her amusement, the old lady gave what looked like a pretty painful tug on Ban's ear. "Be more polite, young rip." The Queen smiled at Himiko and her brother. "Goodbye, you two. And congratulations, Himiko."

Himiko bowed, as did Yamato, who said, "Goodbye, my lady." Aesclepius gave a little bow of his own, too.

The Queen smiled, and gave one last look to her grandson. Then she disappeared.

The three—well, three humans and one snake—were left in front of the altar, and the wind began to drop and silence settled again.

Himiko looked at her brother, who looked so alive and so solid, and Ban, who had his hair slipped down around his face and his glasses perched uncaringly on his nose…and she almost thought, for one faint, bittersweet moment, that it was the three of them again, years ago, one team and one family.

Then Ban's eyes caught hers, and the thoughts blew away, as she remembered with a sudden gratefulness the friends and the teammates that were waiting for them presently, back at the Birthplace of Curses.

Yamato tugged on her hand and motioned her to take Ban's. The other man's fingers curled around hers almost protectively…quite uncharacteristically. Before she could think more on this, however, Aesclepius had twined himself around their wrists, and the elder Kudo had given a smile. "Get ready."

A door opened before them, a familiar one to Himiko, covered with markings and writings and images. It was the door she'd first entered on her first trial: the door to the ways of the spirits and through the worlds.

In an instant, they were gone, and the doors swung shut.

…**-…**

His panic and Ban's had been great when they'd turned the girl over and found that she had no heartbeat. They had called her name, relentlessly, and the others had crowded around, calling, too. Then Natsumi and Emishi had arrived, and it had distracted him, for a while. And then his panic intensified tenfold when he realized that Ban, who had been gripping at Himiko's shoulders to keep her upright, had gone deathly cold, and was no longer breathing.

"Ban-chan!" he cried, shaking the other as roughly as he dared. His partner's grip on Himiko had slackened and he fell limply against Ginji. Kazuki had to catch Himiko quickly as she, too, slumped to the ground. "Ban-chan! Himiko-chan! Ban-chan!"

The prickling feeling of magic, and Shido stood. "What's…"

There was a snap, and suddenly, great coils encircled them again.

Everyone stared. "Aesclepius?"

The snake's head came into view, adorned with something like a grin. "I'm back."

Before they could rejoice at this, Ginji cried out in relief. Ban stirred, levered himself up, and knuckled Ginji on the head, a grin on his face. "You idiot. You worry too much."

Ginji rubbed his head in protest. "But you weren't breathing!"

A slight moan from Himiko drew all attention, and they turned their heads to the girl, leaning against Kazuki. She opened her eyes, and blinked. "Ouch."

Everyone cheered.

"Himiko-chan!" Ginji glomped her, just happy to see her alive. Himiko let out a squeak of protest. "Ah! Ginji, I'm okay!"

"Ginji-san, let her breathe," Kazuki smiled, but his hands tightened on Himiko's shoulders in thankful greeting, too.

After a whirlwind of hugs, back slaps, and questions, Himiko cried out that she _did _want to breathe, even for just a while. Nearly everyone laughed at this: relieved, nervous laughter, but still laughter. The girl's smile, however, was sincere, if almost a little…shy. As the others gave her space, she took a deep breath and looked around at them. "Thank you," she said softly. "I owe you all my life."

With smiles on their faces and gladness in their voices, the others told her it was nothing, or something to that effect; minutes later, Ban was looking up at Aesclepius, and giving the order to bring them home.

The spirit nodded with a sort of grin, then coil upon coil surrounded them, spinning, shifting, slipping fainter. Suddenly the Birthplace melted away as if it had never been, and Aesclepius slid back into Ban's arm, leaving a final, whispering farewell in everyone else's minds. All of them were left standing in Himiko's apartment, safe and sound on plain earth once more.

They didn't care anymore what neighbors would think of men and women straggling out of an apartment, clothes torn, bodies wounded and limbs bandaged. Kazuki and Juubei left; Shido towed Emishi away for bedrest at Madoka's house. HEVN told Ban and Ginji to meet her in a day or two, for a new job, before she left with Paul. Ginji offered to take Natsumi home…the girls' house was empty, with no one to guard it, as her father was away on a trip.

As the four trooped towards the door, Himiko felt a wave of sudden weakness wash over her. Natsumi and Ginji cried out in alarm when she stumbled against the doorframe and clung to it dizzily. The world seemed to be fading into black…

There was a half-surprised, half-exasperated grunt from behind her, and then a sigh. Before she could protest, two arms were scooping her up and cradling her gently, securely, and Ban told Ginji to drive Natsumi home on his own (and be damn _careful _about the car). As if through a dim haze, she heard the sound of the door shutting, and Natsumi and Ginji shuffling down the steps. Then the sense of movement: Ban carried her carefully to her room, and set her down on her bed. The last thing that registered on her mind was a soft, "You've gone and worn yourself out, baka," before she drifted off into a deep, healing sleep.

…**-…**

_She was somewhere that reminded her of the Birthplace. It was different, though, because the stars were not so grand, not so frightening. They were still awe-inspiring, but nearer, calmer, more beautiful. Stars were not the only things here: also color, light, movement, beauty…an almost tangible beauty that was so unearthly and sweet it made her heart ache. It almost reminded her of the false angel that had tried to capture her two trials ago…but this place was real, through and through, no fake echoes, no suspicious things. She wondered, now, how she could have mistaken the false angel for a real one. When the real thing touches you, you won't mistake anything else for it, ever. _

_But this place was not for her…not yet. She was waiting for someone. _

_He was in front of her, all of a sudden, seated mid-air and smiling. She smiled back. "Hi, aniki."_

"_This may be the last time I'll see you," Yamato said gently. _

_Sadness pierced her, but a happiness, too. Because it was nearly impossible to be sad in this place. For a mortal, someone still living, like her, it was sad…for him, it would not be. _

"_Maybe the last time," her elder brother said. His eyes twinkled. "If I get bored, I'll still be dropping by, checking in on either you or Ban."_

"_I'd like that," she said softly._

_Yamato smiled. He was standing suddenly, and enfolding her in a hug, and she hugged him back, for all she was worth. "You will be happy here," she whispered softly._

"_Of course," he murmured. "It's impossible not to be." He let go and looked down at her. "I'm proud of you, imouto. Very proud."_

"_Thank Ban. And everyone else."_

"_I will." Yamato stepped back. Things around her, including her brother, began to fade, to move away. "I love you. Take care of yourself…you will be happy, too."_

_The beauty of the place left, but not completely, because she would always remember it until it was time for her to go there. _

"_Goodbye, aniki." _

**...-…**

When she awoke, blankets were pulled up around her shoulders, and she felt bandages and medicines on her injuries. To her surprise, magic still throbbed inside her...clean, now, free of the curse. It made her feel good, a little...she'd gotten use to the feel of magic under her skin.

The sun was shining bright in the window. It must have been about mid-afternoon.

Everything seemed so normal, so ridiculously quiet…Who could have guessed, that the day before, they had been fighting in another, surreal world, for her life and for the future of many?

_It's over already? _

The day before had taken forever, and yet, it seemed so fast…

The quiet convinced her, a little, that everything was back to normal. Or whatever normal could be, in her life and her world.

Himiko raised herself onto her elbows, and as she shifted her legs, bumped something. Glancing down she saw, to her surprise, Ginji, seated on a chair beside her bed. His head was pillowed on his arms, and he was fast asleep. On a low stool beside him was what looked like a tray of covered food…from the faint scent she caught, it had just been cooked.

Slumped in another chair set against the wall was Ban, glasses sliding down his nose, and snoring gently. He had apparently found some gel somewhere, because his hair was up in spikes again.

_They stayed! _

She looked down again as Ginji moved, yawned, and opened his eyes. He caught sight of her immediately. "You're awake!"

She smiled at him, a little uncertainly—she feared another glomp, and she wondered…what were they doing here? But Ginji just smiled back quietly, eyes twinkling. "Are you hungry, Himiko-chan?" he whispered, gesturing to the covered plate beside him. "Ban-chan said you should eat, when you wake up."

The girl's stomach growled audibly, and she grinned sheepishly at the other. Ginji chuckled. "Heh, it's okay, I know how _that _feels."

With as little noise as possible, so as not to disturb Ban, the blond Get Backer placed the tray on her lap and promptly began to feed her. After a few mouthfuls, Himiko took the spoon, whispering a protest on how she was old enough to feed herself. Ginji smothered a laugh and retreated to his chair, sitting quietly as she ate.

"You're unusually quiet," she remarked after a few minutes of this.

Ginji smiled and jerked a thumb in Ban's direction. "He's asleep."

"Did you get to sleep?"

He nodded. "Un." He grinned sheepishly. "Sorry, Himiko-chan, I wanted to help Ban-chan take care of you when I got back from bringing home Natsumi, but I was really tired, and Ban-chan made me sleep…"

Himiko stopped him with a shake of her head. "Ginji, it's okay, you two didn't have to stay at all…"

The tone of her voice was so embarrassed, and yet so surprised…

Ginji looked startled, and what she might have called shocked. "You think we'd leave you alone, Himiko-chan?"

Himiko stared back at him, and couldn't say anything. She dropped her eyes, ashamed. Had she really thought that? She hadn't expected them to _stay…_Patch her up, maybe, but not stay until she awoke to make sure she was all right…

She wasn't used to people caring so much, for her.

It struck the former Emperor that she really hadn't expected them to do anything at all. Just like she hadn't expected them to show up at her doorstep and make her accept their help, and hadn't expected everyone else to show up at the Birthplace, with the intention to help her in any way they could.

Ginji closed his gloved hand over Himiko's idle one, resting on the bedspread. She looked at him in surprise, and he shook his head at her. "Himiko-chan, you're our friend. We…Ban-chan and I, wouldn't leave you alone if you needed help, ever." He looked earnestly into the girl's eyes. "Everyone else wouldn't, either. Kazu-chan and Shido, and Master and Natsumi, and HEVN and Emishi and Juubei and…and even Akabane-san." Himiko smiled a little, at the way the man stuttered the doctor's name almost fearfully. Ginji grinned, then continued. "They've all called already, asking if you were all right, and saying to tell them when you woke up. Even MakubeX and Sakura-chan called from Mugenjou, to check on you, and they're sorry they couldn't leave the place to help." A thought crossed Ginji's mind, and he rubbed the back of his head in an almost sheepish manner. "Eh…Kagami-san called too, but I don't know if you want to hear that…"

Himiko shuddered. Ginji pressed her hand again. "The point is…you have people who care about you." His eyes seemed to gain a faraway look, as he said the next words. "In Mugenjou…you learned how to value friends. Friends were hard to find, hard to keep…outside, the same, only with more malice and more betrayal, because in Mugenjou it was simple and harsh: life or death, this side or the other's. Out here, there's politics and feuds and deceit and many other complications, all hidden under a mask of normality. It's harder to spot, out here. But in both places, once you find a friend, a real friend, that friend is not going to leave." Ginji's smile was gentle and sad, and happy remembering. "No matter what happens, no matter what comes. That's what real friendship is…what we tried to do, in the Volts. Sometimes, I wonder if anyone really got happiness out of it…but at least in the Volts, Himiko-chan, you never had to worry about being alone.

"When you have friends…when you have friends, you don't have to worry about things like that…being alone, being abandoned, having no one left. You will, you probably will, but it's not for anything. Because friends just make everything easier, friends are just there, to help. That's just…what they do." He wasn't looking at her, and he was rambling, now…but Himiko felt tears prick at the back of her eyes, and a lump form in her throat. "And we'll do it for you, Himiko-chan, and for each other, always…

"And even if Yamato-san's not here anymore, and things have changed between you and Ban-chan…Ban-chan's the one who made us all get into action, did you know? You have us, the Get Backers and everyone else, and we'll…Ack! Himiko-chan! Why are you crying!"

Silent tears coursed down the girl's cheeks, and yet she let out choked laughter at the look of panic on Ginji's face. "G-ginji…"

"Aah! Did I say something to make you cry! Himiko-chan, what did I do, I'm sorry I…"

A light thwack on the top of his head stopped him. Ban rolled his eyes as huge puppy-dog ones turned to him. "Ban-chan, I didn't mean to, what's wrong with her?"

Ban sat down on the edge of the bed, and his hand came down to rest lightly on Himiko's back. "You just reminded her that others really care, that's all," he said dryly. "Though I don't know how she missed it, after yesterday. Well, that and she's also exhausted beyond belief." The girl had buried her face in her hands by this time, trying to control her sobs. The hand on her back moved up and down, calming and soothing, like her aniki used to do. "It's a good thing, actually, don't get so screwed up over it."

"Are you sure, Ban-chan?"

Ban leaned back against the wall, and turned his gaze on the bowed, green head. "Let her cry, Ginji." His eyes softened. "She needs it."

…**-…**

They stayed the rest of the day in her apartment, and the rest of the night, too. When she was feeling better, though, she scolded them good-naturedly for cleaning out about half of her food supplies, while she was unconscious. She laughed when the two protested that they'd been hungry.

She called those who had checked on her, to tell them she was all right. Her heart was warmed at the way they reacted upon hearing her…_they had been worried, _she realized. _More worried than I thought. _

When he heard this, Ban had rolled his eyes and called her a baka. Ginji shocked him for it, and Himiko laughingly kept them apart.

The Get Backers got a call, the next day, from HEVN, telling them of a case, interesting and relatively urgent.

"I hope she fixes us a good pay," Ban complained, as they washed lunch dishes.

Ginji was soaping, and Himiko drying. She raised her eyebrows at him. "I hope you finally have luck with money."

"Hidoi, Himiko-chan!" Tare-Ginji wailed.

Ban growled and flicked water at her. "Shaddap."

She snickered and hit him on the side of the head with the washcloth. "Baka."

They were to go right after lunch. Both Ban and Ginji stopped in the doorway, though, reluctant to leave. Himiko looked on curiously. "HEVN's waiting…"

"Will you be all right?" Ginji blurted out.

Himiko smiled as she looked up at them. "I'm sure I will." Her eyes twinkled. "I'm free, remember?"

Ban nodded, a pleased grin on his face. "Aa. Hopefully, nothing else comes chasing after you." His face grew serious. "If, though, anything does…"

"I'll call you two," Himiko promised. "My magic works, still. In case the phone doesn't."

"I'm surprised, actually," Ban told her. "But it's a good thing."

Ginji beamed brightly at her. "You take a rest, okay? We're going to check on you again when the job is done."

"Ginji…" Himiko began. Then she sighed, and smiled when the two shot her oddly identical 'you-don't-have-a-choice' glares. "Thanks."

Ginji gave a last wave, and turned to go, as did Ban. "Smile, Himiko-chan!"

Himiko lifted her hand to wave back…and stopped. "Ban, wait! I forgot!"

The Get Backers turned curiously as she darted back to her apartment.

She dashed to the hamper where she threw used clothes, and began to rummage in it. Locating what she'd forgotten, she quickly made her way back to the door, object clutched tightly in hand.

Ban raised an eyebrow at her. 'What?"

She opened her mouth, then looked around, confused. "Where's Ginji?"

Ban shrugged. "I sent him ahead."

"Oh." There was a short silence, and then Himiko plowed on. "Anyway…here."

Ban opened his hand automatically, and into it she pushed a familiar-looking lighter. It was then she noticed that she _did _have a scar in her palm, from the lighter burns…many scars, actually, criss-crossing and spiraling, but they didn't hurt…Ban must have healed them completely. There was also, barely visible, a blurred KY. Souvenir, from her seventeenth birthday. She grimaced, and turned her attention back to Ban. "Thank you for this. It saved my life in the second to the last trial, actually. And helped in the other…"

He stared at it, and then tried to give it back. "You keep it."

She shook her head and pressed it firmly into his palm. "I won't use it," she said sharply. "It'll go to waste here. I told you, I'd give it to you later, and it's later now…I'm glad there _is _a later."

"But…"

"Come _on_, Ban." Himiko's face was determined, yet gentle. "I don't need an object to remember aniki. The lighter belongs to you."

Ban looked at her, then at the lighter, and then he slipped it into his pocket. "Thanks," he muttered.

She grinned. "Think of it as my thank you…and his, for keeping your promise." She grinned wryly, and tried to joke. "You don't have to bother yourself with me, now."

Ban looked up sharply. "Oi."

She stared. "What…?"

He looked down at her, piercing and clear. "Just because that promise of mine is fulfilled, doesn't mean I'm not going to stop running after you, or checking up on you. Got that?"

"Ban, I was joking," she protested.

He raised his eyebrows. "Not really, you weren't."

Himiko met his gaze, and then looked down.

Ban's voice reached her ears rough in tone but not ungentle. "Himiko, remember what Ginji said. We didn't come after you because I made a promise to Yamato." He bent so that his face was level with hers, and she was forced to look him in the eye. "We did it because you're our friend." He gave something almost like a grin. "Ginji's too soft-hearted to leave a friend in danger." His grin faded away. "I…was wrong, the first time. I left you, after Yamato was killed, because I didn't think it was danger I was leaving you in…"

"Stop that," Himiko interrupted, voice fierce. She swallowed. "I wasn't nice to you…"

"I killed your brother. Who would be?" His voice rose.

She shook her head roughly. "Ban, I know _why _now. It wasn't your fault. I…I made peace with you already, for that." She bowed her head. "I…hope I did."

There was a silence, and then Ban said softly, "Yeah, you did." When she looked up, he tried to smile. "What I was trying to get at, is…I won't leave you, either."

Himiko gulped and felt prickling again, at the back of her eyes. "Ban…"

"After all, someone has to save your ass from all the trouble you get into," he finished dryly.

Himiko made an indignant noise and aimed a swipe at him. "Baka!" She scowled as he grinned mischievously. "I don't do it on purpose!"

He smirked. "Sometimes, I wonder." He laughed as she swung at him again, like she used to when they were younger, and avoided her easily before trapping her in a headlock…something he hadn't done since she was thirteen. "Gotcha."

Himiko struggled, complaining. "Ba-an! Get off! I'm not a kid!"

To her surprise, Ban's hold relaxed, and his voice came out a little strange as he agreed, "No, you're not."

And she was startled to feel his arms slip around her, and his cheek press lightly down on her hair, as he caught her and held her firmly against him in a brief moment of relief and gratefulness, that she was alive...Then he let go, and disappeared down the stairs with something like a muttered, "Be careful with yourself."

She stared after him, eyes a little wide, face a little red. Then she shook herself, and shut the door, a soft "Thank you" still on her lips.

Downstairs, the blond-haired man grinned at the brown-haired man, who glared murderously at him before softening and saying, thank you, for helping. And the blond Get Backer said, it was what friends were for. Like…the S in Get Backers. And the other half of the duo grinned and punched him lightly, for being so heartwarmingly and meaningfully cheesy.

And far away, in the lands no one alive has roamed in, a spiky-haired spirit-man relaxed, and smiled.

_Thank you for keeping your promise, Ban. _

…**Thus ends: The Promise…**

**(1)**Majo-sama is "Lady Witch". Something like that.

Feb 10. Happy Birthday, Himiko! –laughs-

I know this chapter was no action at all…and much like the Prologue. Really fast, and short. It basically just tells you how it ends, after all.

To those I didn't fool with the cliffhanger in the last chapter: Heh, you know me too well. :D Author's note at the beginning meant: Nobody kill me for it being the last chapter.

It's done. I looked at the publish date and was like…"I spent half a year on this? Woah."

Hope you all enjoyed reading this rendition of Himiko's curse. :) Got no other GB chapter fics planned…yet. Make that, got no other chapter fics planned (apart from **Pretty With a Shockwave** and **the Where Do Babies sequel**, but that's with Riyuji and according to our time and creativity). Maybe I'll write more, sometime. It all depends…and I also want to get back to my poor abandoned other personal stuff. :D Oh, but I got quite a few one-shots left, all GB, so…yeah. Keep watch for those.

I'm going to miss writing this, though.

For the reviewers:

**snow-baby: **Worst cliffhanger? Thank you. :D Fic's over. ToT Oh well. Thanks for reviewing, snow-baby! Hope to see more of you in the future:D

**marbles: **Sorry…Feb 10, in honor of Himiko's birthday. Yeah? What's the most boring topic on the face of the earth? Oh, and you haven't emailed me yet. XP Hope you liked this…See ya!

**machanbanlover: **Here's the last chapter. …Araw-araw, yeah? 0.0 Woah. Go you. Good luck with school…see ya!

**Hyoni**:You actually have manga to read? Luuucky… :D Share! Just kidding. Hope you enjoyed…bai bai!

**limelie: **Last chapter. n.n Hope you liked. I can help in your death:D Just kidding. Ja, limelie, see you!

**Wat3ry-ch4n: **Nope, she hasn't died. This is relatively faster that I've been updating…hope you liked! Bye!

**Atropos' Knife: **Saw that your computer is fine, again. Glad to hear so. :D Now, you go and put up chapter six of "The Prize". n.n Okay? Yay! Ja, Atropos-san!

**sakura: **First GB-fic you've read? Thanks for the honor. :D Hope you enjoyed.

**undeniably evil: **Oo, sayang malapit matapos. :c Don't worry, honey, I always finish what I start. So if I do write another chapter ficcie, you can be sure I'll do it to the end. :) Bai bai! Thanks for reading!

**Elle30: **Hm, not exactly dramatic, but hopefully you liked what he did, too. :D don't worry, I have more Ban/Himiko fics, and…yeah. Stay tuned for them and the other one-shots. …I think you _did _mention you were from Tondo at some point. Oh well. :D Bye, Elle, thanks for reading…see you!

**YunCyn: **-grins- Oops, did I disappoint you that much?Hehehe… :DGlad you liked the nine chapters…tell me you didn't read them in one sitting. 0.0 If you did…woah.

-whistles innocently- You see what? I have no idea what you're talking about. n.n Weeheehee. Hope you liked the ending, at any rate. Thank you. :D Oh yeah, and before I forget...drop by the account of Riyuji.Raicho, and read "Where Do Babies Come From?", drop a review or some, if you feel like it (Riyuji and I are shameless in advertising) and wait for the sequel. I think you'll like Chapter 3 of Where Do Babies, and you will like how we open the sequel. XD Which will hopefully be up sometime. Hahaha. Bai bai!


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